


Uncharted Land

by Alex_Altoona



Category: The 100 (TV), clarke and lexa fandom
Genre: Clexa, F/F, Lexa as a kid, Nightblood and Nightbloods, Prequel, conclave
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-04
Updated: 2019-06-17
Packaged: 2019-08-17 17:14:28
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 14
Words: 42,743
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16520612
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alex_Altoona/pseuds/Alex_Altoona
Summary: Unlike many other fanfics, the end of this story is already known. It's when Clarke meets Lexa for the first time.So my story is set in the time before the dropship with the 100 delinquents hit the ground. It's going to be an unofficial prequel of The 100 and is basically about the grounders, their culture, the different clans...and of course Lexa. I'd like to give the grounders the back stories they deserve.This is my first fanfic. I appreciate any comments.PS: You can find me also on twitter: @alex_altoona





	1. Chapter 1

It's nearly spring, though, the winter has come back. The wind is howling through the valley, it has begun to snow once again. Quickly, the snow covers the trees and the ground, lets the narrow path through the forest disappear under a thick white blanket. The sun will go down soon.

The horses trudge through the snow. They are calm and tired just like their riders are. There are four of them. Slowly, they approach a small village. It is nestled into mountains and has only six wooden huts.

“Here we are!” Titus calls, generating small clouds when he speaks. He's a man of middle age, tall and thin. Like the three warriors who are accompanying him, he's wearing a black cloak, that also covers his bold, inked head. He doesn't carry any visible weapons with him. Titus stops and looks at his guards. Each of them is armed with a long sword and they are younger and more athletic than him. Cem and Bronn are wearing long brown beards, their hair is dark and short and their faces and necks are mostly covered with tattoos. Amber is the only woman of the group. In addition to her black cloak she's wearing a dark brown shemagh that covers her head and mouth.

Titus leads them down to the village. They pass a simple wooden bride upon an already streaming creek. No one is to be seen.

His guards are frowning. They are holding with one hand their reins, so they have their other hand ready to draw the sword. Titus makes them stop and dismounted from his horse. So his warriors do. “Cem, look after the horses while we are searching these huts,” Titus commands. “ And watch out for any people running off, especially children.”  
“Sha, Flamekeeper,” Cem nods. “No one will escape unseen.” He reaches for the reins and hold them tight. 

Titus, Amber and Bronn trudge to the first hut.

The snow is crunching under their feet. Titus brushes off the snow from his cloak and knocks on the door, he is standing between his guards. An old woman opens slowly the door, looking afraid at them. She's leaning onto her walking stick.  
“What do you want from us?” she asks Titus.

Titus steps forward, takes off his hood and growls, “the commander sent us to look for new nightbloods! Like in the previous years, we have to check every hut ourselves.” The old woman nods and lets them in. The hut is small and has only one room. Apart from the fireplace there is no additional source of light, so it is quite dark. Titus looks around.  
“Do you have any kids here?”  
The woman shakes her head. “No, it's just him and me,” she says and points to the bed, where an old man is sleeping. Titus scans the walls and the ground for any secret places to hide. He is very experienced in finding nightbloods, as it is part of his duties as a Flamekeeper and he has served for the commanders for almost 25 years now. He looks to Amber and Bronn, gives them a short nod.  
”Okay, we've finished here!” he announces. They leave the hut and walk back to Cem, who is still waiting outside.

The old woman watches them go off and sights quietly, when the warriors slam the door. Silence seeps in. “You should have told them about Sereenya's daughter,” the old man says, trying to bring himself up. His voice becomes reproachful when he adds, “it's our duty to serve the commander!”  
She turns to him, worried, “I know. But I can't do it anymore,” her voice cracks. “We have already lost so many kids to the commanders...”

Titus looks around. Five more huts they have to check. They walk up to the next one. 

There is a still burning fireplace on a stone floor to the left of the hut. Next to the fire is a short, thick trunk with an anvil on top of it. On the hut's wall hang several hammers and tongs in different sizes. 

The door is opened immediately when they stand in front of the hut.  
“It seems, the news of our arrival has already spread all over the village,“ Amber whispers to Bronn, who hushes her with a nudge of his elbow.

They enter the small hut. It is home for a family of four. Like the first one, it's quite dark inside. Titus lets his gaze wander through the room.  
“The commander sent us to look for new nightblods! Bring us your kids!” he commands. The father, a blacksmith, hesitates for a moment, bows his head slightly to Titus.  
“My kids aren't nightbloods,” he assures and begins to sweat. “There is no need to hurt them”. The mother tries to force back tears. 

Suddenly, Bronn draws his sword and holds it against the blacksmith's throat.  
“It's not on you to decide what's necessary and what's not. Do as the Flamekeeper demands!” he growls.  
“Teila,” the blacksmith croaks, “bring him our boys.” The woman's face is pale and covered in sweat. She takes her kids to Titus. She's shivering but doesn't make a noise. The two-year-old clings to his mother's gray skirt, tries desperately to hide behind her. She carries the newborn baby in a black sling.

While the sword is still being held against the blacksmith's throat, Titus approaches the toddler, takes his hand. He pulls a hidden dagger from his belt and makes a short cut into the boy's palm. Immediately, the boy starts to cry. Titus presses on the injured hand with his thump until it begins to bleed.  
“Red blood,” he says to his guards. Then he turns to the baby. His mother swallows hard. Carefully, Titus takes the newborn's arm and cuts into the little palm as well. He squeezes the tiny hand until it bleeds as well. Titus watches the wound getting red.  
“Like his brother, he is no nightblood,” he announces.

Then he looks around suspiciously.  
“Do you have any other children here?” He glares at the mother who shakes her head.  
”Don't dare to fool me or you'll be dead in a second,” he says angrily.  
“No... no we don't,” the blacksmith replies.

“Fine, let's go then,” Titus calls out to his guards. Bronn sheaths his sword and turns away from the blacksmith. 

Titus and his guards leave the hut. The tops of the mountains are touched by the last rays of sunlight. They gather and are standing in a circle. Cem still holds tight to the reins.  
“What is it?” Bronn asks Titus.  
“I'm not sure yet. There's something wrong with them.” He pauses. “My gut feeling tells me they didn't tell us the truth”.  
“Well, “Amber says, “There are still four more huts to search, so let's go. I don't want to freeze my buns off any longer!” She blows on her hands and rubs them together.  
Titus nods. “ I wish I were at home in Polis as well. But this area, especially this remote village hasn't been searched for nightbloods for years. So there is a real chance we might be successful here.”

They search three more huts without finding any nightbloods. A storm arises and due to the falling snow the sights gets down to almost zero. Titus and his guards trudge to the last hut of the village. It's located at the edge of the woods. Smoke is rising from its chimney and warm light is shining through a small window. Titus rounds the hut and then turns to Cem, who is standing with the horses in front of the hut.  
“Don't let anybody escape!” he reminds him again. Cem nods. Titus, Amber and Bronn walk up to the door. Before Titus knocks on it, they look at each other and give themselves a nod.  
“Last hut, guys!” Titus whispers. “Just this one and then we are leaving the mountains and heading back to warmer climes!”  
Titus knocks on the door and a twelve year old girl opens. She stares at the three people.  
“The commander sent us to look for new nightbloods!” Titus growls as he did in the other huts. The girl nods, opens the door completely and lets them enter the hut.  
Titus and his guards squint their eyes. The room is lighted with countless candles. The girl closes the door quickly.  
“Do you have any children here?” Titus demands to know.  
“No,” the girl replies “ I've lived here by myself since my father died.” She nervously runs her fingers through her hair.  
“No?” Titus arches a brow. Then he turns to his guards. “Go and search the whole hut!” he commands. Amber darts to the bed and rummages it. She kneels down to look under it. Then she opens the old wooden chest and takes out all of the cloths. “Nothing!” she hisses. Bronn knocks on the wooden walls to get a hint of a hiding place. Titus keeps on staring at the girl. She breathes heavily.  
“What about the ground, Bronn? Are there any hidden hatches?” Amber asks.  
Bronn scans the floor. “Can't see a hatch! But wait, what's that?” He points to the gray, hand-woven carpet that is lying in front of the bed.  
He pulls at the carpet and finds a hatch. With a smug grin he opens the entrance. “hmm, can't see much. But it seems so be empty, at least no kids” Bonn growls. Titus joins him and take a candle to get a better sight into the tiny cellar. “No kids” he grumbles but then narrows his eyes. He climbs down and picks something up. Angrily he leaves the cellar, closes the hatch and darts to the girl.  
“So there are no kids here, huh?” he shouts at her.”And what's this?” He shows her the wooden doll he has just found. The girl takes several steps back, unable to say something.  
“You are a liar,” he growls. “Where is the kid, where?”  
Bronn draws his sword once again, threatens her. For a moment, a tense silence fills the air.

Two fierce green eyes are watching them. A little figure suddenly jumps off a wooden beam where she was hiding. The kid lands with superior ease on the floor.  
“Don't hurt Melissa,” the little girl shouts, “I am here.” Everyone turns around and stares at her. She's not even three feet tall and she's wearing a dark brown top with long sleeves and black pants. Her leather belt is a bit too long although it's already carrying a small dagger. Her curly brown hair is messy but with her green eyes she gives Titus a challenging look.  
Melissa's face turns ashen. She hardly manages to keep standing upright, still threatened by Bronn.

Titus kneels down, looking at the little girl, amazed. “What's your name?” he asks her, almost friendly.  
“ _Ai laik Leksa kom Trikru_ ” she replies and raises her left hand. She takes her dagger with her right hand and cuts into her left one. Black blood appears and drips down to the ground. “I'm the nightblood you have been looking for.”


	2. Chapter 2

Titus is sitting on a wooden chair and watches Melissa and Lexa. Bronn is standing near the door while Amber is sitting on the bed, playing with her knife.  
“Where are Lexa's parents?” he asks her, while Melissa is kneeling before the Nightblood, tying up her injured hand. She looks down and focuses on her task, avoiding Lexa's gaze.  
“Her mother is a warrior. She was called up to the battle against the Desert Clan last winter, together with two other warriors of our village.” She knots the two ends of the bandage and adds, “they were supposed to join the forces in Polis but none of them arrived there. Also, none of them returned home. As far as we know, the three of them wanted to take the trail that runs along the foot of the Mountain. She raises her head, looking to Titus. “We assume the Mountain Men took them.”

“I remember that battle.” Titus says, voice low. “The Desert Clan took us by surprise. We weren't prepared for war. Our army had been at our southern border to Shallow Valley. The Commander was absent, too”. He shakes his head. “It took us several weeks to gather enough warrior and defeat the Desert Clan.”

“I was with them,” Bronn interjects. “It was a hard battle although we outnumbered them at least three to one. They lured us to the desert. An awful place for a Trikru warrior. No trees, no hide, no water. Many died, most of them because of the heat.” He turns to Lexa and says “But eventually our Commander arrived and we won that battle. That's all what matters. The Commander is a wise man and a great warrior. You will meet him soon!” Lexa doesn't react to Bronn but looks at her bandaged hand instead.

“What about her father?” Titus returns to his question. Melissa shrugs her shoulders. “Unknown. Sereenya didn't talk about him. She hardly spoke to us at all.”

Titus glances back to Lexa. She sits on the ground, pressing her doll against her chest, watching them. For a moment, she looks like a normal toddler again.

“Did you know that she's a Nightblood?” Titus asks Melissa, who is standing now, her hand clasped loosely in front of her chest.  
“Yes,” she admits. “I was present when Sereenya gave birth. The midwife, an old wood witch, told us immediately that the baby was a Nightblood.”

“A wood witch? Titus arches a brow.  
“Wood witches are quite common in this area” Bronn cuts in, his sword still in his right hand. “Did she say anything more about the Nightblood?” he asks her.

“Who?” Melissa awkwardly shifts with her feet.“  
“The night witch!” Bronn clarifies, “they often prophesy the destiny of a new born baby.”  
Titus eyes grow dark, looking between Bronn and Melissa.  
She doesn't reply. Her face gets pale and her eyes look haunted.  
“Answer!” Bronn demands.  
The girl swallows a lump down her throat. She takes a deep breath and sighs quietly.  
“The wood witch did prophesy, yes. I didn't hear everything she said but Sereenya seemed frightened. It was the first time I saw her so scared.”  
“Do you remember anything she said?” Amber asks her.  
Melissa shrugs. “To me it was very confusing. The wood witch took Lexa's arm and stared at her hand. Then she murmurs something to Sereenya that I didn't catch completely”  
There is silence for a moment before Melissa continues.  
“But I remember her saying to Sereenya that the child would unite ground and sky one day.”  
Titus hums.  
“What does that mean, unite ground and sky?” Amber's forehead crinkles in confusion. Bronn narrows his eyes. “That can mean many things. Wood witches don't speak clearly, they often use riddles to communicate their message.”  
Melissa nods. “That was the only part I got. The other one I didn't catch. But I think Sereenya did. She seemed so panic.”  
Amber stops playing with her knife. “May be we should ask the wood witch ourselves? I'd like to know -”  
“Stop it!” Titus interrupts her. “We came here to find Nightbloods and we did. We won't further investigate what a so called wood witch might have said.”

Melissa turns to Amber. “Even if you want to question the wood witch, you can't do that anymore. She's already dead. Sereenya killed her right after she told her about Lexa's future.” Amber gasps at Melissa and then silence begins to seep in again. Lexa puts the doll on her lap and suddenly she addresses Titus and his guards, with a proud voice. “My mother is a warrior. Same as me.” 

Melissa sighs. “ We had to swear an oath that we wouldn't tell anyone about Lexa being a Nightblood. Otherwise Sereenya would have killed us too.”  
“We? Who else knew?” Titus looks back from Lexa to Melissa.  
“That old couple in the first hut you checked. Sereenya lived together with them. She came to our village over two years ago.”  
“So she isn't originally from here?” Titus questions her further.  
Melissa shakes her head.  
“Interesting.” Titus says, his hand rubbing his shaved chin.  
“When Sereenya left for battle she told me to take care of Lexa and make her a warrior.”  
“She has stunning abilities for a two-year-old.” Titus says and this is more a question than a statement.  
A small smile touches Melissa's lips. “She's special. And much more smarter than other children of her age, so I started training her quite early. She's eager to learn and so fearless”.  
“Fearless, hmm?” Titus murmurs. “That's useful. What have you already taught her?”  
Melissa holds his gaze. “First I taught her hiding. Then we start with knife-throwing.”  
“Glad, she cut herself and didn't throw a knife at us to show off her fighting skills!” Amber says and rolls her eyes. Bronn nudges her again with his elbow.

Titus stands up. “Anyway, we are done here. Prepare for travel!”  
“What should we do with her?” Bronn motions to Melissa.  
“She tried to hide a Nightblood. Take her out.” Titus says, his voice cool and controlled.

Bronn and Amber jump to their feet and dart to Melissa. Amber holds her by the arms, doesn't let her run off. Melissa starts crying. Lexa tries to get to Melissa, but Titus catches her.  
“She is a traitor, Lexa!” Titus growls. “She wanted to hide you. She didn't want to give you the chance to become the next Heda one day! We will make you a great warrior in Polis, I promise. And now watch her die, because the only punishment for treason is death!”  
Lexa stops hitting out in all directions and watches Titus' guards and Melissa.

Bronn quickly pulls a dagger from his belt and cuts Melissa's throat. Blood spills over her body and she collapses in seconds.

Lexa gasps at the dead body right in front of her. She doesn't move.  
“We're heading to Polis now,” Titus commands. “Take the Nightblood, grab a blanket and some food for her. Then burn down the hut. People have to learn what it means to hide a Nightblood!”  
Bronn begins to search the hut for food. Amber takes a worn blanket from the bed walks outside.  
“I'll inform Cem!” she calls and Titus nods.

Then he approaches Lexa, pointing to the fire place. “Nightbloods don't have dolls. They are strong. They don't need toys at all.” And he adds “destroy it, now!”  
Lexa stands up, tears trailing down her cheeks. She takes a few steps to the fire place, carefully walking around the pool of blood. When she stands in front of the fire place she glances to Titus who gives her a small nod.  
“Be strong, Lexa!” he demands. Lexa throws the wooden doll into the fire and watches it burn. Quickly, the doll is consumed by the fire. Crackling fills the air. Lexa wipes off the tears with her right sleeve. Then she turns to Titus, giving him a questioning look. Before he can say anything, Amber returns.

She stumbles through the door, out of breath, bending over, her hands brace her knees. “Cem is dead and the horses are gone!” she pants. Bronn darts toward Amber, steadies her. “What happened outside? Are you hurt?”  
Titus runs over to them and closes the door.  
“I, ...I went around looking for Cem. I thought he was right behind this hut but he wasn't. I called his name but there was no reply. Then I tripped over something. First, I thought it was just a root or something like that but”, she falters for a second, “but it was him. He was badly injured and the snow had already been covering his body.”  
“Did you see anyone else? Any last words from Cem?” Titus demands to know, worry in his voice.  
“He was shot by an arrow,” she reports. “He got another one when I was talking to him and he was dead immediately. Then, I started running back to you.”  
“Did you see the attacker? Are there several attackers? Bronn asks while he is leading her back to the bed so she can sit down.  
“I couldn't make out anyone. I just ran.”

“We can't leave now,” Titus says quietly. “It's too dangerous. We would be an easy target for an archer as soon as we left the hut. We are slow by foot and we have to carry a toddler.” He slides his hands over his face, racking his brains.  
“Also,” Amber adds, “it would be easy to follow us because of the footprints we left in the snow.”  
Titus nods.  
Bronn sits down next to Amber.  
“But we don't know what happened exactly outside. Why Cem had to die. Maybe they were just horse thieves they took him out to get the horses.”  
“No,” Amber interjects “that doesn't make sense. If they just wanted to steal our horses then why would they shoot a second arrow? He was already dying.”  
“I agree with Amber,” Titus says. It's no coincidence that we were attacked now, having just found a Nightblood.” He strokes his chin and sighs.  
“It could be anyone,” Amber considers.”Warriors of other clans, reapers, people of this village. It could be even _her_ parents!” She motions to Lexa, who is sitting on the floor again.  
“That's impossible!” Bronn growls. “Didn't you listen? Her parents are dead.”  
“You didn't listen” Amber snaps back. “Her father is unknown and her mother missing.”  
“Stop it!” Titus shouts.  
“We are leaving the hut as soon as the sun rises. Without horses we can't make it to Polis. The next save place for us is TonDC. That's where we are heading to. So make sure you are prepared.”  
Titus turns to Lexa, who is sitting on the ground again. “Don't be afraid,” he says with a friendly voice. “We will keep watch tonight and eventually bring you to Polis unharmed.”  
Lexa holds his gaze. Then she looks up to the ceiling. Titus arches a brow.  
“What is it?” He looks above, too. But he can't make out anything special. Lexa points with her right hand to her ear. Titus listens thoroughly for any sounds. Then his eyes widen.  
“I got it! It has begun to rain. The weather changed. The snow will melt!”  
Lexa stands up and walks over to the old chest. She opens it, grabbing some clothes, covering her head. She puts her dark boots on, takes a worn out leather jacket and darts to the door. Then she motions the others to follow her.  
“No,“ Bronn rejects, “it's still dark outside. It's too dangerous. They might shoot at us. We've to wait.”  
Amber nods.  
Bronn and Amber both are taken by surprise when Titus agrees with Lexa.  
“She's right. We should go now, it's raining heavily so the snow will be gone within minutes. If the attackers are still nearby, they expect us to wait until dawn.” He pauses, turns to Lexa and mutters, “smart little Nightblood”.

It only takes several minutes until everyone is fully dressed and ready to go. Amber and Bronn strip their swords on their backs. Bronn also carries a leather pouch with some food. He motions his head to the fire place and gives Titus a questioning look.  
“No, we won't burn down the hut. It would reveal our plan.”  
Titus bends over to grab Lexa but she shakes her head.  
“I can walk!” she says and a hint of stubbornness touches her voice.  
“Fine. Stay behind me and make no sound!” he commands.

Quietly they sneak out of the hut. It's in the middle of the night. The snow has melt almost completely. In the distance they can see the dim light of the other five huts. Beside the sound of the falling rain there is silence.

Titus leads the little group. Amber and Bronn follow him, Lexa between them. The ground is slippy and muddy.  
“Let's take the shortest way to the treeline,” he whispers. “We must avoid the path we took this afternoon. The attacker might expect us to take that trail out of the valley.”

They make their way into the forest. After a few minutes walking Bronn knocks on Titus' shoulder.  
“Titus, look!”. Everyone turns around. The little hut, now 500 ft. away, is burning.  
“We should hurry,” Titus whispers and takes Lexa's right hand. “Don't get lost.”  
To leave the valley they need to walk up the hillside. There aren't many bushes so they sneak from tree to tree.  
“I can hardly see anything,” Bronn grumbles, stumbling over a root. They trudge very slowly through the muddy ground.  
“Try to avoid any kind of noises,” Titus hisses to the others.  
The moon is still covered by dark clouds. It's pitch dark. Titus raises his free hand to touch for any unseen trees or trunks in the dark. His guards are right behind them.

They are walking for hours without making a rest. Titus glances every few seconds to Lexa, holding her hand tightly. The rain has stopped falling.

“Can't wait for dawn. It's so dark, I think I have almost walked into every tree between the hut and us,” Amber complains quietly. Bronn hushes her.  
The group stops when a large trunk blocks the hiking up.  
“We have to climb over it” Bronn whispers. He nudges Amber to come with him. They draw their swords and jump over the trunk simultaneously. They land on their feet and search for any kind of enemy.  
“It's okay, you can follow!” Bronn mutters to Titus and Lexa and sheathes his sword. The little Nightblood begins to crawl over the trunk but slips down to the muddy ground.  
“Pssst,” Titus hushes her and helps her up. “Don't make any noise” he hisses. And Lexa doesn't.

“We are too slow,” Titus says. “The sun will rise soon. I'll carry Lexa, so we can walk faster.”  
He lifts Lexa up, holding her tight with both arms.  
“She's exhausted,” Amber whispers to Titus.  
“I know she is. We all are but we have to hurry.”  
They keep on trudging through the wood.  
“Brave little Nightblood,” Titus murmurs to Lexa, who's head lies against his shoulder, already sleeping.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading :-)
> 
> I hope I can update the story within the next two weeks.
> 
> You can find me on Twitter: @Alex_Altoona


	3. Chapter 3

The first rays of the sun touch the forest, revealing bare trees and a brown, monotonous scenery.  
Titus rubs his eyes after long hours of darkness.  
“At least we're back on track and it's easier now to make our way to TonDC.” He turns to his guides and shouts, “let's make a break!” They walk over to a trunk near the trail. Titus hisses quietly when he drops Lexa off carefully at the trunk and stretches his sore arms. She wakes up immediately and looks around. Titus sits down next to her. Amber and Bronn join them.  
“We should eat,” Bronn demands and opens his pouch with the food from Melissa's hut. He hands out some stripes of dried meat and a few nuts. They eat in silence.  
“That was good!” Amber says, “all I need now is some water. Too bad we lost our water canteens together with the horses. I feel like I could drink a whole ocean.”  
“Stop whining!” Bronn grumbles. “We are in Trikru land and not in a desert. You are free to jump into the next stream.”  
Amber rolls her eyes and turns to Titus.  
“How long will it take to get to TonDC?”  
Titus points to their path.  
“Now that we can take proper trails we will get forward much faster. Using the maximum of the sunlight we could make it 'til sundown.”  
“Then we shouldn't rest that long,” Amber replies. They finish eating quickly and stand up. Bronn takes two steps to Lexa.  
“You come with me!” he calls to Lexa, lifting her up. She doesn't resist. They don't talk much the following hours. Titus is leading them, Bronn and Lexa right behind him. Amber walks with her sword drawn, looking in all directions for any kind of thread.

The rugged landscape of the mountains changed to deeper forests.  
A smile tugs on Amber's lips.  
“There must be water nearby. I can hear the sound of a creek.” She hurries and passes an annoyed looking Bronn.  
“It's here!” she calls and motions the others to follow her. She runs down a hillside and sprints across a clearing. As she reaches the creek, she crouches and cups her hands to collect some water and starts quenching her thirst. Titus and Bronn stay above. The Flamekeeper scans the clearing suspiciously.  
“What is it?” Bronn asks, standing with Lexa next to him.  
“Do you hear anything?” Titus whispers. Bronn listens.  
“No, I don't hear anything,” he shrugs.  
“See, that's the point.” Her narrow his eyes and suddenly croaks, “run!” He repeats himself, this time even louder, “run!”  
Amber snaps up her head. “Run!” Titus yells at her. A horn sounds in the distance.  
“The fog is coming!” Titus shouts, “we need to find a shelter.”  
He scans the forest for a place to hide while they are running.  
“Wait for me!” Amber calls, still being at the creek. Yellow fog appears and makes its way along the creek. Quickly, Amber is surrounded by the fog. Her screams echo through the wood and her skin begins to blister. She is stumbling through the water, then she collapses completely.

Titus and Bronn run with Lexa in the opposite direction. They run fast and don't dare to look back.  
“Come here!” suddenly a firm voice shouts. A black skinned warrior waves her arms wildly and motions them to her. Without hesitation, Titus and Bronn sprint to the young woman.  
“Jump down here!” she demands and points to the hatch in the ground. Titus jumps first into complete darkness.  
“Throw her!” he yells at Bronn, “I'll catch her.”  
“Hurry!” the warrior shouts. Bronn lets Lexa fall into the dark entry.  
“I got her!” Titus calls, stepping aside to make room for Bronn and the young warrior. Bronn jumps seconds after him. The woman climbs down a few steps at the ladder and closes the entrance by pulling down the hatch. 

“Is everybody fine?” Titus asks breathlessly.  
“I'm okay,” Bronn whispers. Lexa squeezes Titus' hand in response.  
“That was damn close,” the young woman says while she's climbing down the last steps of the ladder.  
“It was,” Titus agrees. He lifts his free arm to grope along a wall.  
“Do we have any kind of light here? It's pitch dark!”  
“Unfortunately, we don't,” the warrior replies. “ We have to wait until the fog is gone.”  
“At least we don't get burnt by the fog,” Bronn murmurs. He's standing right next to the warrior and lets his hands slide over the wall.  
“What kind of hiding place is this? The walls are so smooth. It doesn't seem like something Trikru people build.”  
“It's something people built in the old world. We use this place every now and then when the deadly fog is coming or reapers are nearby.”  
“Reapers, hmm? Are we that close to the mountain?” Titus asks.  
“Quite close,” the warrior confirms. “We were on a hunting trip near the mountain as the alarm horn was blown. You were quite lucky we saw you.”  
“We?” Titus asks suspiciously into the dark. “You have been with someone?”  
Bronn tightens his grip at his sword at those words and draws it a few inch out of its sheath.  
“Don't even think about raising you sword against my warrior. You would be dead in a second,” a strong female voice snarls from the other corner of the room. Bronn and Titus stiffen.  
“We should leave. Now!“ Bronn calls to Titus and clings one hand at the ladder.  
“Into the fog? That's insane!” the young warrior shouts at him. “But I can kill you right here now, if you want to die!”  
“Enough, Indra!” the unknown warrior shouts authoritatively.  
“When is it safe to go outside?” Bronn demands to know.  
“When the horn is blown twice,” Indra answers, annoyed.  
“I doubt we can hear the horn down here,” Titus interjects.  
“That's right,” the unknown warrior agrees. “That's why we just have to wait long enough to make sure it's safe outside.” She licks her lips. “So that gives you time to tell me who you have brought with you, Titus!”  
Despite the dark, Titus widens his eyes. “Wait, you know my name? How is that possible? You haven't even seen me enter this room.”  
“Oh, Titus!” the woman laughs. “It was you voice that gave you away. Do you really think I wouldn't recognize the voice of the Flamekeeper?” she teases.  
“Altoona?” Is it you?” Titus' voice is full of disbelief.  
“Yes,” Altoona confirms.  
“The last time we met you were in Polis to join your army and marched against the Desert Clan. I didn't know you made it,” Titus says.  
“It was a hard battle”, Altoona snarls and adds, “but we water the desert with their blood so we made it home to TonDC eventually. But that's another story. Who's with you?” she asks again.  
“We had been heading to Polis before we had some trouble and I lost two of my guards. The warrior next to Indra is Bronn,” he pauses for a moment, “and the little girl is called Lexa.”  
“Lexa, hmmm?” Altoona murmurs quietly.

Indra begins to climb up the ladder.  
“What the hell are you doing?” Bronn hisses. “You will kill us all!”  
“That's rich coming from _you_ !” Indra snaps back. She takes another step and hushes the other warriors.  
“Shh, I can hear something,” she whispers and tilts her head to press one ear against the hatch. Everybody gets quiet.  
“Reapers!” Indra suddenly whispers.  
“Stay where you are and don't make any noise!” Altoona commands. “Indra and I will deal with them.” She stands up and creeps slowly to the entrance. Indra and Altoona position themselves at the end of the ladder, ready to fight. Silence seeps in again and they remain this way for a while.

“I'll go up and listen again,” Altoona whispers to Indra. She climbs up the ladder and listens for any noises.  
“They are gone. We can leave now,” and she adds, “but we must be careful, they could be still nearby. Indra and I will go first. We'll give you a sign when it's safe outside.”

Altoona opens the hatch slowly for a few inches. She squints her eyes as the sun light hits her and fresh air flows into the small bunker. She rubs her blue eyes and blinks several times. Then Altoona looks around through the small gap. Eventually, she opens the hatch completely and jumps out of the entrance, twirling around, her sword already drawn. Only seconds later Indra stands next to her. They let their eyes wander over the empty clearing.  
“They're gone,” Indra says. “We should go as well.” Altoona nods and strikes her sword against the metal hatch. “Come out!”  
Bronn leaves the bunker first, followed by Lexa and Titus. 

Altoona stands several feet away from them and watches them thoroughly. She's a young woman in her early twenties, her long dark brown hair is interwoven with many thin braids. As Trikru warriors Altoona and Indra both are wearing the typical black leather clothes and high boots. Indra is slightly younger than Altoona, her dark fearless eyes match her short dark hair. 

Titus walks over to Altoona.  
“We have to hurry,” he says, “it's already afternoon and nightfall is going to come early in this season.”  
Altoona agrees, “I just have to grab a few things and then we are ready to go!” She walks back to the bunker and disappears. A moment later she leaves the bunker with her bow and quiver strapped on her back and a pouch in her hand. Before they start walking, she goes up to Lexa. She crouches down so she can look into the Nightblood's eyes.  
“You must be Lexa,” she says quietly. Altoona puts her own hand on her chest.  
“I am -,” she begins to introduce herself.  
“You are a warrior!” Lexa interrupts her, gazing with awe at the warrior.  
A smile touches Altoona's face and she ruffles through Lexa's messy hair.  
“We should go now.”

Titus approaches her, his face worried.  
“It might be better if you guide us on the safest way to TonDC.”  
“Sha, Flamekeeper,” she says and takes over the leadership of the little group.  
“We are heading east to TonDC!” she calls out, “so it's this way!” and points to the treeline. “We should leave the area of the mountain as soon as possible.”  
Right behind her are Titus and Lexa, followed by Indra and Bronn. The little Nightblood walks next to the Flamekeeper, eager to move after long hours in the bunker.

“What happened to your horses?” Bronn asks Indra. “Please don't tell me you walked all the way from TonDC by foot.”  
“They fled when they heard the signal horn. Maybe they were fast enough to escape from the fog.”  
“Can't you just call them? We are too slow by foot,” Bronn says while he's rummaging through his pouch. Indra flare her nostrils.  
“We can't call or whistle for the horses. It's too dangerous. The reapers might hear us.”  
“Indra's right,” Altoona cuts in. “Besides, the horses will find their way home if they are still alive. No need to worry about that.”

They leave the clearing and enter the forest. The group follows Altoona in silence for hours while Indra is watching out and looks suspiciously in all directions. Then Altoona gets a little bit slower to make Titus catch up with her.  
“She's a Nightblood, isn't she?” Altoona tilts her head to Lexa and arches a brow.  
“You know I can't talk about these matters,” Titus grumbles. “But how the hell did you know?”  
“It's obvious,” Altoona smirks. “What else should be the reason for you to come here? The Flamekeeper itself!”  
“The Commander sent every warrior available to the battle against the Desert Clan, even my flame scouts. Only a few came back. We hadn't gotten new Nightsbloods for a while so the Commander got impatient and sent me.”

They follow the path deeper into the forest when Lexa suddenly falls over and doesn't stand up again. Altoona is with her in seconds and picks her up. Lexa's eyes are closed and her cheeks are red. Altoona puts one hand against Lexa's forehead.  
“She's weak and has a fever. I'll carry her.”  
“How long will take to get to TonDC?” Titus asks her.  
“I think it's still a six hour walk. But I'm afraid we won't make it 'til sundown.”  
They keep on walking for several more hours, it's almost sundown when they reach another stream.  
Titus beckons Bronn and Indra over to him.  
“We'll make a rest here,” he announces. “Go and watch out for enemies.”  
The guards nod and sneak off in different directions.

Altoona turns to Titus.  
“She's still sleeping but we should make her drink some water. The fever is high.”  
Titus nods and they trudge down to the stream. Altoona crouches so that the sleeping Nightblood sits on her left leg, secured by her left arm. Altoona cups her right hand and takes some water out of the stream and lets it flow over Lexa's face. After that she pours some water into Lexa's mouth.  
“Drink!” she demands and watches her swallow.  
“It works!” Altoona cheers. “Let's give her some more.” She repeats the process a few times before Altoona and Titus drink some water as well. In silence they trudge back up. Bronn and Indra join them.  
“We couldn't make out any other people here,” Indra reports.  
“Fine,” Titus utters. “Go and get you some water. It'll be pitch dark within minutes and the ground is too wet and muddy to make a fire.”  
While the two of them trudging down to the stream, Altoona is looking around and crinkles her nose.  
“This isn't a good place to spend the night. There's nothing we can hide or get shelter from the wind.”  
“True,” Titus replies. “That's why we'll spend the night in the trees. We are Trikru, aren't we?”  
He walks over to an old oak and starts climbing up. Altoona stares at him and teases, “Didn't know you can climb trees, Flamekeeper!”  
“Well,” Titus explains “I wasn't born as Flamekeeper, you know. I had a childhood like every other Trikru kid. So of course I'm capable of climbing trees properly.”  
“I see,” Altoona admits, trying to contain her laughter. She watches Titus sitting down on a thick branch, his back leaned against the trunk.  
“Lift her up to me!” he calls and opens his cloak. Altoona raises herself on tiptoes and gives him Lexa.  
“Carefull!” she hisses.  
“I got her!” Titus says and lays Lexa on his lap, her head leaníng against his chest. He buttons his cloak a little bit, so that his cloak protects the Nightblood from the wind.  
“Don't worry, I won't let her fall,” he tries to sooth Altoona who doesn't seem convinced yet. “Wait for Bronn and Indra and then keep watch in turns. We start heading to TonDC at dawn.”  
Altoona nods. “Sha, Flamekeeper.”  
The night is freezing and stormy. The tree branches are shaking in the wind. Wolves are howling in the distance.

The night passes without anything happens. Indra is the first who jumps off her tree. She stretches her arms and legs and scans the nearby trees for the others.  
“Time to go!” she hisses as she finds Altoona. She wakes up immediately and looks down to Indra. “Yeah, I'm coming.” she mutters. She has slept much higher in the tree than Indra and has to climb down carefully. Bronn yawns and join them.  
“Glad we can go now,” he grumbles quietly.  
“Where are Titus and Lexa?” Indra whispers.  
Although the brighter sky in the east announces the rise of the sun, no sun rays make their way through the forest yet.  
“Hmmm, I can't see them but I think they settled on the old oak right here,” and Altoona points with her right arm at one of the trees. “This one.”  
Indra looks above. “But it's empty. Where are they?”  
From thick bushes at the other side of the clearing sounds a crackling noise. The tree warrior startle and hide behind trees, swords drawn.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I will add some simple words in trigedasleng because this story is about grounders :-)

Altoona crouches between bushes and stares in die direction the noises are coming from. She's tense, ready to fight. Then, something white catches her eyes. The sound of a nicker fills the air. Right in front of them appears a white horse without rider. Altoona looks around, her eyes scan the dark forest for any signs of following warriors but the horse seems to walk alone through the wood. It moves in the direction where Altoona, Bronn and Indra are hiding and it's obvious that the animal has already scented them.

Indra frowns as Altoona sheathes her sword, stands up slowly and approaches the white stallion. She reaches out her right hand and pets its neck.  
“Good boy,” she whispers and relaxes visibly.

A moment later, a second horse makes its way through the bushes, accompanied by Titus and Lexa.  
“I'm glad it's you. And you brought our horses!” Altoona cheers. Bronn and Indra draw back their swords and join them.

“We ran into these horses over there, “ Titus reports and points to the other side of the clearing.  
“Are these yours?” He is still carrying Lexa, who is awake now. Altoona and Indra nod.  
“Why did you leave your tree in the first place?” Bronn asks.  
“She had to relief herself so I climbed down the tree with her. But afterward I couldn't climb up again with her to the place where we had rested. So we stayed close and met the horses.”

Altoona glares at Bronn. “You should have noticed that. It was your turn to keep watch!” she grumbles. Bronn is about to answer something but Altoona stops his statement with a motion of her hand. Her gaze shifts to the Nightblood in Titus' arms.  
“How is she?” Altoona asks, putting her hand on Lexa's forehead.  
“Weak,” Titus replies. “Let's go to TonDC now.”

Indra mountains her horse. Altoona motions Titus so her white mustang. He gives her a questioning look.  
“I wouldn't ride when the Flamekeeper had so walk instead, “she explains. “Take the horse, I'll give you Lexa.”  
Titus agrees with a short nod and mountains Altoona's horse in one fluid motion. She lifts the Nightblood and Titus puts her in front of him. The hint of a smile touches Lexa's face before she falls asleep again.

They walk for hours in silence. When they see the sentries of TonDC, it's already late in the morning. Two heavy armed Trikru warrior approach them.  
“Who are you?” the bigger one of them asks harshly and glares at Titus and Bronn.

Altoona steps forward. “Guard your tongue,” she calls, “you are speaking to the Flamekeeper.”  
The warrior remains skeptical and stares at Titus. The Flamekeeper's lips form a thin line while he's pushing back the hood of his black cloak. He pulls out a chain that is hanging around his neck and show the sentries his badge. It's a wooden tag with a carved infinite symbol on it.

“I am Titus, Flamekeeper from Polis,” he growls, “the Commander sent me on a secret mission.”  
The bigger one of the warriors nods, “ _sha, fleimkepa_ ”, then he turns to the other sentry. “Let them pass and take them to the General!”  
“Anything happened?” Indra asks suspiciously while the second sentry moves his spear to let them enter TonDC.  
“The Commander is dead.” he announces. Titus and the warriors stiffen. “The General will tell you more.”

Indra and Titus dismount and Altoona helps Titus to get Lexa safe from the horse. The stable boy approaches them and Altoona gives him the reigns.  
“The horses are exhausted. Bring them to the stable and feed them,” she commands.  
“Sha,” the young warrior replies and walks off together with the horses.

Altoona still carries Lexa and joins Titus, Bronn and Indra on their way to the General. They hurry to an old underground station.  
“Wait her, “ Titus says to Bronn and Indra before he and Altoona go downstairs. They follow the sentry into the underground. A constant stream of cold, dump air approaches them. The high walls are clad in white and blue tiles, though many are broken. Not all torch holders contain a burning torch. Their way is dark but they can follow the warrior effortlessly. He turns left and after the walk through another tunnel they arrive at a door. Several armed guards glares at them.  
The sentry steps forward and points to Titus and Altoona. “Kenn ordered me to take them to the General, “ he says, his voice harsh.  
“Wait here, “ one guard answers shortly and disappears through the door. He comes back a moment later. “You may enter.” Another guard holds the door open for them. The sentry enters the quarters, followed by Titus, Altoona and a guard.  
“General,” the sentry addresses a man, “Altoona has returned from the scout mission.”  
Titus slightly arches a brow at the expression “scout mission” but remain calm. The sentry gestures to Titus. “And this is Titus, Flamekeeper from Polis.”

General Edden, who was just sharpening his sword with a whetstone, nods at the sentry and motions him outside. The warrior darts to the door and makes his way back. The General lays his sword on a nearby table and walks over to Titus and Altoona and stops several feet away from them. He's a man in the 40ies, wearing dark trousers and a black leather jacket with short metal spikes on the sleeves. Above his braided bear, a prominent scar runs from his right cheek to his ear. He has a shaved sidecut, the remaining dark hair pulled back in a pony tail.

“Flamekeeper!” he says, “what an unexpected honor! What brings you here?”  
Titus has his hands clasped in front of him. No emotions are visible on this face as he begins to speak. “The Commander had sent me to look for Nightbloods. We were searching some of the remote villages in the mountains near to the border to the Blue Cliff clan, when we got in trouble. We were attacked and lost one guard and our horses. Near Mount Weather we lost another guard to the deadly fog before we ran into your warriors.”  
The General listens and grits his teeth slightly as the fog is mentioned. He looks from Titus to Altoona, “any news from the mountain?”  
“We saw several reapers walking through the area around the mountain. Also, there was a deadly fog once again. Nothing new, “ she huffs.

“Flamekeeper,” the General says, “one of our scouts has returned just before you. He told us that the red fire at the top of the tower in Polis had been ignited.”  
“So the Commander is dead?” Titus asks, his voice hard. “Any word from Polis?”  
The General shakes his head. “Our scout was in the forest between Polis and TonDC. He rode back immediately to us, when he saw the red flame. We don't know yet what happened. I have already sent another scout to Polis.”  
“I've to leave for Polis. Right now. My apprentice Joss is well trained but I rather overlook the conclave and ascension myself.”  
“Of course you do,” Edden says and bows his head slightly to Titus. “Pick some warriors to guide you safely to Polis. I'll provide rested horses and food.” His looks shifts to Altoona, who still carries Lexa.  
“What about her?” the General points to the Nightblood. Altoona is about to answer but Titus is faster.  
“The reapers killed her parents. We found her near Mount Weather and saved her from the fog, though it seems she has a fever.”

Altoona tenses but doesn't object.  
“Another orphan to feed then,” the General grumbles, “Altoona, pick any mother of the village and bring the child there.”  
“That's not necessary,” Altoona rejects, “ I'll take care of her myself until it is safe to bring her to Polis to the orphanage.“  
“So be it,“ the General says eventually. “Go with her to your hut, I'll send a fisa.”  
“Sha, General, “she replies. As she turns to leave the quarters with Lexa, she glances to Titus who gives her a pointed look. One of Edden's guards closes the door behind them.

The General motions for his own warrior.  
“Let the Flamekeeper pick another warrior and prepare three horses for a ride to Polis. Also, send a fisa to Altoona's hut.”  
The warrior nods and walk away quickly.

“Flamekeeper, you can stay here until the horses are ready,” Edden says and walks over to the door, opens it and motions to a servant. “Bring food for our guest and me, quickly!” The servant darts to the kitchen and disappears in the dark tunnel.  
The General offers Titus a chair at his table and both sit down.

“Do we have to be worried?” he asks Titus.  
The bold man clasps his hand, laying his forearms on the table.  
“I am always worried when the Commander is concerned,” he replies but his face doesn't show any emotions. “It's hard to believe that our Commander died of natural causes.”  
“So war is brewing again?” The General narrows his eyes.  
“War is always brewing.” Titus answers, face unreadable.

The door opens and the servant enters, bearing a tray with food. He sets the tray on the table and hands out two small bowls, mugs,wooden spoons and a big bowl of stew. He places a plate with sliced bread next to the bowl and pours a dark tea into their mugs. He fills the small bowls with the stew and Edden gives him a small nod and sends him back to the kitchen.

“Wait!” Titus shout after the servant and lifts his hand. “Please provide my warrior Bronn and Indra with food as well.” The servant stops walking and turns to Titus.  
“Another servant was already sent to bring them food, Flamekeeper. Altoona had already taken care of that.”  
Titus nods and starts eating. The servant leaves the room and shuts the door behind him.

“As if Altoona would let anybody starve,” Edden comments and takes a slice of bread and dips it into the stew.  
“True,” Titus agrees.

 

****

 

Altoona carries Lexa from the underground station to her hut. Unlike the small village in the mountains, the huts of TonDC are mostly made of corrugated iron and other stuff left from the old world. Only few buildings made of brick have remained. Muddy paths run through the small town, in which center a common fire place is located.

She arrives at her hut and opens the door.  
“Well, that's where I live,” she mutters more to herself than to Lexa, who is still sleeping. They enter the hut, that only contains one room. She opens the window to let some sunlight coming in. Altoona lays her down on her bed, murmurs “I'll be back in a minute” and darts with a torch to the fire place outside. Shortly afterward the comes back with a burning torch. She ignites some candles in the hut. The air inside is still cold and damp. Altoona crouches in front of her little oven, which is standing between her bed and her table. She opens the hatch, putting in some logs and dried moos, and makes a fire. She put the torch in the torch holder and goes back to Lexa, checking her fever by laying her hand on her forehead again.

“You still have a fever, child,” she murmurs. She pulls off Lexa's boots and wet socks and put them on the ground near to the oven. Someone knocks on the door.  
“Enter, “ Altoona calls, her right hand resting on the hilt of her sword. The door is opened by an old woman. She enters the hut together with a young boy.

“The General sent me. You have an ill toddler?” she says and her eyes already scan the hut for the child.  
Altoona lets go of the hilt of her sword and points to her bed.  
“Right,” Altoona says, “we picked her up on our way back to TonDC. She has a fever and seems very weak. The fisa approaches the bed and motions the boy to follow her.  
“This is Nyko, my new apprentice.” Altoona glances at the boy with the dark brown hair who has seen not more than eight summers. He has his hands clasped behind his back and watches the fisa thoroughly. The healer puts her hand on Lexa's forehead. Then she undresses her to look for any kind of injuries. She undoes the bandage around Lexa's left hand and looks at the gash that runs over her palm.  
“The wound should have been stitched up. It might leave a scar. But fortunately, she's a little Nightblood, so the wound will heal fast.”  
Altoona tenses at the word “Nightblood”. The fisa notices Altoona's discomfort immediately and squeezes her shoulder.  
“Don't worry. Word will not spread, “ she assures and glares at her apprentice. “Don't tell anyone about the Nightblood. Is that understood?”  
“Sha, fisa,” Nyko replies with a small voice and bows his head slightly.  
They focus on Lexa again.

“Well, no infected wounds, no broken bones,” she says to Nyko. She slides both her hands along Lexa's neck. As she reaches the ears, the Nightblood makes a painful noise. The fisa presses her thumps behind Lexa's ears and the Nightblood gives a howl of pain.  
“Inflammation of the right ear, “the fisa diagnoses, “very common among babies and toddlers.” Nyko nods, hanging on the fisa's every word.

“We have to lower the fever. And we need to clean her throat and the ear.” She looks so her apprentice. “Go to my hut and get one of the white onions together with a piece of bark of the black willow, “she commands to Nyko and he darts to the door and fulfill his tasks.  
“And bring also several cloths!” she shouts after him.

The fisa picks up a wooden bucket. “I'll get us some cold water,”she explains to Altoona and walks off quickly. Altoona gazes at Lexa and lets her hand run through Lexa's hair.

The fisa and Nyko return a few moments later.  
“Put a pot on the oven and take half of the water from the bucket and boil it,” she instructs Altoona. The warrior does as she was told. The Nightblood only wears her underwear. The old woman takes two cloths and put them into the cold water. Then, she wrings them out and wraps them carefully around Lexa's calves. She lays also a third cloth on her forehead.  
The little Nightblood begins to shiver slightly. 

“Give me the bark,“ the fisa commands to Nyko. He hands it over to her and she looks at it suspiciously. “Let me check whether you've brought the right one. She lets her hands slide over the rough, dark brown bark, sniffling at its surface and cuts off two tiny pieces. The fisa puts on piece in her mouth and chews it thoroughly.

“You picked the correct one” the praises her apprentice a moment later and gives him the second piece of bark. “Chew it and try to memorize the specific taste. We use the bark of the black willow not only against fever, it's also a painkiller.” She emphasize her words with a raising hand. “But never use the bark of the black willow for people with bleeding injuries. They would bleed to death, “ she says with a hard voice.  
Nyko nods, frightened.

The fisa lays the remaining bark on a wooden chopping board and breaks it into smaller chips. Then she pours two spoons of the bark into a mug and fills it up with boiling water.  
“The tea must brew for a while. She can drink it as soon as the tea is only lukewarm. It will ease the pain and lower the fever,” she explains to Altoona. The warrior nods and sits down on her bed, next to Lexa.

“In the meantime, make an onion pack for her ear, Nyko,” the fisa addresses her apprentice.  
Nyko draws a knife from his belt and starts chopping the onion. Within seconds his eyes are filled with tears but he sticks to his task without complaining. He wraps the little pieces in a clean cloth. Then he puts the stuffed cloth in a bowl and sets the bowl in the pot with the hot water. Patiently, he waits until the stuffed cloth has warmed up. The fisa watches every step. He removes the wet cloth from Lexa's forehead and puts the warm onion pack carefully on the infected ear. After that, he takes a long and dry bandage and wraps it around Lexa's head to fix the onion pack at her ear. 

“You did well,” the fisa praises him.”Now she must drink the tea.” She removes the bark from the liquid and hands the mug over to Altoona. The warrior pulls Lexa on her lap and secures her head with her left arm. Lexa slowly wakes up when she sits upright. Altoona feeds her with the tea. Lexa makes a face. It's obvious that the tea tastes awful to the little Nightblood. The fisa helps Altoona to make Lexa drink up her tea.

When Lexa finishes drinking, the healer treats her cut with a salve and wraps the hand with a clean bandage. The old woman packs her things and motions Nyko to the door.

“Keep an eye on the fever. I'll come back this evening but don't hesitate to call for me if she's getting worse, Altoona.”  
“ _Sha, fisa_ ,” she replies, “ _mochof_.” She walks with them to the door to see them off when Titus shows up. He's sitting on a horse, accompanied by Indra and another warrior.  
The fisa and her apprentice pass them, slightly bowing their heads to Titus. Altoona gives Indra and Titus a questioning look and Indra maneuvers her horse nearer to her hut.  
“Bronn won't join us. He needs to rest.” Indra emphasizes the word “rest” and scowls visibly. Altoona suppresses a tug at her lips at Indra's expression. Titus ignores Indra's comment and dismounts. He gives the second warrior his reigns and walks up to Altoona.

“A word, in private!” he demands.  
Altoona motions him to come inside and he enters the hut. She watches him shutting the door, waiting for him to speak. The warmth in the hut forces Titus to push back his hood.

“We're heading to Polis now. The red flame has been ignited and you know what this means.”  
Altoona gives him a subtle nod and lets him continue.  
“I don't know yet what kind of situation I'll have to face in Polis. It might be too dangerous to bring her to Polis right now.” He glances to the feverish Nightblood before he makes several steps toward Altoona.  
“I want you to take care of Lexa while I'm away. Only you.”  
“Titus, I'm not sure whether...,“ she begins but the Flamekeeper stops her statement with a harsh motion of his right hand.  
“I'm sure you can. You lived for so many years in Polis with us, you truly understand the importance to keep a Nightblood child safe.” And he adds, “you're the only one I trust in TonDC. Don't tell anyone about her being a Nightblood.” His expressions remain hard.  
Altoona swallows thickly.  
“Too late, “ she admits. “The fisa and her apprentice already know. They saw her black blood when they changed the bandage of her injured hand.”  
Titus narrows his eyes. “ I was afraid that would happen.”  
“She assures me word would not travel.”  
“Can she be trusted?” Titus asks suspiciously.  
“She's a healer. They are not interested in politics.”  
Titus hums. “What about the boy?”  
“He was told to keep it a secret. I know his family. He won't dare to say anything, either.”  
“Nevertheless, be careful,” he stares at Altoona as he asks her, “will you protect her with your life?”

Altoona stands in front of him, still wearing all her weapons and with a proud gesture she puts her right hand on her own chest.  
“I will, Titus.”  
Titus nods, satisfied with her answer.  
“I'll send a word as soon as the situation is under control in Polis. Do you still remember the sacred code for our messages?”  
“As if I could forget that” Altoona says and flashes him a half smile.  
“Good. And in case you don't get any message from me, you know what to do then as well.” Titus voice is still hard and he expects nothing but confirmation.  
“Sha, Flamekeeper.”  
Titus gazes a last time to Lexa.  
“Keep her safe,“ he whispers softly before his mask falls firmly back into place.

He turns to the door. “I've to go now, “ he says with a hard voice. “Bronn is ordered to stay in TonDC to help you. He's under your command for now.”  
Altoona just nods and Titus exits the hut, shuts the door behind him and approaches his horse. The second warrior, who accompanies Indra and him to Polis, gives him back the reigns without a word and Titus mountains.

“Hurry!” he calls and makes his horse move.

 

 _fisa_ : healer  
_mochof_ : thank you  
_sha_ : yes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll update the story within the next two weeks :-)


	5. Chapter 5

Altoona watches Titus and his two companions riding off. She turns, close the door of her hut from the inside and walks over to Lexa. She checks her temperature but can't make out any improvement yet. She sighs quietly, takes a clean mug and brew herself a tea. She sets her mug on the table and settles herself onto a chair. Her bow, which is still strapped on her back, bumps against the back of the chair and reminds her that she is still armed. Altoona stands up, takes off her bow and quiver and hangs both on a hook in the wall above her bed. She takes off her jacket as well and places it on the back of her chair. Then she draws her sword and lays it on the table next to her mug. She drops onto her chair again sips from her mug of tea. She rests her head on her left hand and can barely keep her eyes open.

Suddenly, someone knocks on the door. Altoona startles, her eyes snaps fully open and she pulls a dagger from her belt.  
“Enter,” she says loudly with a hard voice. The door is opened and a woman enters the hut. She carries a tray with food and smiles at Altoona. It's a woman in her late forties, her light brown hair is pulled back in a ponytail. Her blue eyes brighten as she spots the Nightblood.

“Hi Altoona. Glad you're back. I just want to bring you some food for you and your, um, your child.”  
Altoona sheathes her dagger back and relaxes visibly.  
“Lenna!” she calls and motions her to the second chair at her table. Lenna glances at Lexa again and sets the tray on the table. She gives Altoona a plate with sliced meat and mushed vegetables.  
“I bet you didn't eat and didn't rest for days.”  
“You're right,” she admits and gets herself a fork and a knife from the nearby shelf.

Lenna lets her eat in silence but glances over to Lexa a few times.  
“What happened to her?” she asks after a while.  
“As far as I know she's an orphan. The Flamekeeper and his guard picked her up on their way to TonDC. She's ill, the fisa said she had an inflammation of her right ear.” Altoona finishes eating and sips her tea again. “Eventually, when she's healthy again I'm going to take her to Polis.”  
“Polis hmm?” Lenna arches a brow.  
“But first we have to wait and see how things work out, now that the Commander is dead.”  
Lenna responds with a nod before silence seeps in for a moment.  
“The General will gather all citizens of TonDC as soon as he has news about what happened in Polis.”  
Altoona looks up from her empty plate and regards the older woman.  
“The period of time between the death of the current Commander and the ascension of his successor is always dangerous. Trikru is vulnerable without a Commander.”  
“I agree,” Lenna says quietly. “It wouldn't be the first time that a clan tries to take advantage of the situation and marches against us. I'm sure General Edden prepares for war.”  
“He'd better do,” Altoona replies, her expression unreadable. She stands up and sets her mug and the plate on another shelf near to the oven. Then she turns and looks to Lexa.  
“She should eat something as well.” She takes a few steps and sits down on her bed, laying her hand on Lexa's forehead again.  
“Still too warm but it's getting better,“ she mutters. Softly, she shakes Lexa's shoulder with her hand.  
“Wake up! You must eat something.”  
Lexa opens her eyes and looks at her.  
“Not hungry,” she croaks. Then she tilts her head and falls asleep again.  
Altoona shrugs slightly and turns to Lenna.  
“Any advice?”  
“I'll go back to our hut and make a broth for her, “ Lenna says and stands up. “We should feed her with broth until the fever is lower. Drinking is the most important thing now and she needs to rest of course.”  
Altoona nods in agreement, fighting a yawn.  
“You should rest as well.”  
Altoona flashes her a half smile and runs her hand through her hair.  
“And where? My bed is, um, occupied.”  
“Guess you gotta share...” Lenna smirks, takes her tray and walks to the door. “I'll come back later with the broth for her. Is there anything else you need?”  
Altoona shakes her head, “no, thank you.”

Lenna leaves the hut and Altoona extinguishes most of the burning candles. She pulls off her boots and puts them under her bed. Then she lays her knife under the pillow, lifts up the sleeping Nightblood a little bit and shifts her position so that Lexa lies at the left side of the bed, near the wall. Altoona lies down next to her, carefully adjusting the furs in way they don't cover the feverish child. She closes her eyes and falls asleep immediately.

Altoona wakes up as Lexa begins to stir next to her. She glances to the window and assumes that from the angle of the sunlight it must be already late afternoon. She sits up and looks at Lexa. The Nightblood murmurs something and starts hitting out in all directions. Altoona lays her hand on Lexa's shoulder, trying to sooth her.   
“It's okay. You're safe, Lexa!” she addresses her in a friendly voice.  
Lexa snaps her eyes open, looking at her confused.  
“It's me! Altoona!” she assures her.  
Lexa's eyes begin to focus on her.   
“Flamekeeper?” she croaks.  
Altoona shakes her head.   
“He isn't here. Titus is heading to Polis.”  
“Me too,” Lexa says and tries to sit up as well.  
“Shhh,” Altoona hushes her and pushes her carefully back to a lying position.  
“You're in my hut in TonDC. And you will stay here for a while. You must rest.”  
Lexa clenches her little hands into fists and narrows her eyes.  
“But I must go to Polis,” she objects her.  
“And eventually you will,” Altoona replies. “But first you must recover and regain your health.”  
Lexa doesn't respond immediately but considers Altoona's words. Her eyes become unreadable for a short moment before her anger disappears.  
“I am thirsty,” Lexa complains with a small voice.  
“I'll get you some water. Stay where you are!” Altoona commands and climbs out of the bed and fills a mug with water. She returns to Lexa and helps her so sit upright for a moment. She's holding the mug while Lexa is drinking. After finishing the mug, Lexa slides with her hand over her throat and makes a face.  
“What is it?” Altoona asks. “Do you have a sore throat?”  
Lexa nods and Altoona helps her to lie down again.  
“I'll inform the fisa when she drops by later. Surely, she can help you.”  
Altoona checks her temperature once again and nods, satisfied. She removes the wet bandages around Lexa's calves, wrings them out and hang them over the back of one of her chairs.  
She opens a wooden chest, takes out a thin wool blanket and covers the shivering Nightblood. A short knock draws her attention to the door. Lenna returns, carrying a small pot with a steaming liquid. 

“Did you rest a bit?” Lenna asks and sets the pot on the table. “I've brought you the broth.”  
“Yes, I was able to take a nap, “ Altoona says and yawn. “Any word from Polis so far?”  
Lenna shakes her head. “No, we are still waiting for the return of the scout.”  
Altoona frowns. “Hopefully, that's not a bad sign.”  
“It's a half day ride from here to Polis. So the scout isn't delayed yet.”  
“Who has the General sent this morning?”  
Lenna take a bowl from the nearby shelf and fills it with the broth.  
“He sent Barya.”  
“Good choice, “ Altoona agrees and walks over to Lenna.   
“Would you mind looking after her for a moment?” She gives Lenna a sheepish smile. “I have to wash myself and I need to take care of some other things as well.”  
Lenna nods and squeezes Altoona's shoulder. “No problem. Don't hurry, I'll keep watch.”

Altoona grabs a piece of soap, a towel and a washcloth and darts to the door. Seconds later she stops, hesitates and walks back to her bed.  
“I'll be right back, “ she says to Lexa but she doesn't respond to her. She has snuggled up in the blanket Altoona brought her and is almost asleep. Altoona shrugs slightly and looks over at Lenna, who has already set down on a chair.  
“It's okay, you can go. I'm here,” she encourages the younger woman.

Eventually, the warrior exits and shuts the door behind them. Lenna looks out of the window and watches Altoona walking off. Lost in thought she stares outside, watching the hustle and bustle around the common fire place. Warriors from all villages around TonDC has arrived and gather at the fire. A hunting party returns and children run up to them. They encircle the hunters, laughing and cheering. The hunters make they way to the fire where another warrior joins them and help them with their prey. They shot a deer, a fox and two pheasants. They begin to cut up the prey and spit the meat at metal spears. General Edden shows up, shouting some commands in order to make sure a fair distribution of the prey. 

Lenna startles as someone pulls at her sleeve. She turns her gaze away from the window and stares at Lexa. The Nightblood has the blanket wrapped around herself and gives her a questioning look.

“I want to go to the Flamekeeper. To Polis.” She's weak but her voice doesn't waver.  
“Oh child, the Flamekeeper has left this morning.  
“Why did he go without me?” Lexa pouts, tears are filling her eyes.  
“Because there are reasons,” Lenna says clipped and doesn't mention the death of the current Commander. Lexa looks down and lets her shoulders drop.  
“Don't worry, child. I'm sure Altoona will keep taking care of you,” and she gives Lexa a weak smile. The Nightblood isn't fully convinced.  
“Can _you_ take me to Polis?” Lexa pleads.  
“I'm going nowhere, my place is right here,” Lenna rejects her request. Then she motions to the bowl of broth on the table.  
“You should drink it as long as it is still warm. Sit down, I'll help you.”  
Lexa walks to an empty chair and climbs on it, the blanket still wrapped around her. Lenna stands up and holds the bowl to Lexa's mouth.  
“Don't be afraid, it tastes much better than the tea the fisa gave you.”  
Lexa scowls for a moment and takes a sip.  
“Drink it, you'll feel better,” Lenna says. Lexa doesn't resist and drinks, sip by sip, the whole bowl.  
“Fine,” praises Lenna, “and now go back to bed. You must rest.”  
She accompanies the weak child to the bed and Lexa crawls back to her side. Lenna rearranges   
the blanket and furs and sits down next to her on the bed, regarding the small child. Lexa holds her gaze and narrows her eyes slightly.  
“Who are you?” Lexa asks after a while.  
“I'm Lenna. I'm a friend of Altoona's. I live next door.”  
Lexa looks at her skeptically but doesn't ask more questions.  
“What's _your_ name actually? Altoona hasn't told me that yet.”  
“Lexa,” she answers clipped.  
“Lexa,” the woman replies and pauses for a moment. “That's a gorgeous name.”  
A sad smile touches Lenna's face before her gaze shifts from Lexa to the window.  
“There was a girl called Lexa many years ago,” she mutters. “Her name was Alexandria though everyone used to call her Lexa.” The Nightblood stares at her and it is obvious to her that the topic makes Lenna feel uncomfortable.  
“Are you a warrior?” Lexa asks instead.  
“No, I'm not,” Lenna says, “I'm a hunter.”  
“What does a hunter do?” Lexa asks, eyes wide.  
“We are as important as warriors,” Lenna explains. “We sneak quietly through the wood and kill all kind of animals to feed our clan. Some prey we hunt with a bow or by knife-throwing. Also, we build traps and set them up to catch animals.” She smirks. “ In a way, we are warriors, too. Well, basically everyone who is Trikru is a kind of warrior. However, it's just that fighting against other warriors isn't our main task. But being a hunter includes a lot of fighting against wild animals. Actually, an injured animal can be more dangerous than a skilled warrior.”

Lenna rolls up her right sleeve, revealing several parallel scars which run over her forearm. The Nightblood slides her hand over Lenna's scars.  
“What did you do?” she asks.  
“We were hunting a panther. Wanna hear a little bit more?”  
And Lexa nods, eyes bright.

 

****

 

Titus and his two companions approach a shallow creek. The Flamekeeper swipes the sweat from his forehand with his right hand. Every movement hurts. They have been riding for five hours.  
“Let's make a short break and let the horses drink some water,” he calls. Indra and the scout who is leading them to Polis make their horses stop. They dismount and lead the horses to the creek. All of them crouch and take the opportunity to refill their water canteens.

“Flamekeeper,” Indra addresses him, “if we keep up this pace, the horses won't make it until Polis.”  
Titus takes a sip from his canteen, regarding Indra and their scout.  
“I know we can't push them until they can't walk any further. But at least we should try to maintain our pace.”

Their companion is a young men around twenty. He's wearing brown and green clothes as a disguise. He almost seems to disappear among the trees. His half long brown hair has several braids but his beard isn't long enough yet to get braided. Several dark inked streaks run along both sides of his temples, give him away as a Trikru warrior.

“We'll do our best to bring you back to Polis as soon as possible, Flamekeeper, “ the scout says and slightly bows his head to Titus. “Though we need to take care of the horses or you'll end up walking by foot once again.” He smirks to Indra, who scowls immediately.  
“You know already?” she asks the scout, who prepares for continuing the ride and mounts his horse.  
“Word travels quickly, Indra,” he replies and shrugs. He looks behind and see that Indra and Titus have mounted as well.

“Let's go then,” Titus commands and the three of them let their horses cross the shallow creek and keep on riding to Polis. They trot for another hour as the scout's horse suddenly stops. It raises its head, moves its ears forward and its body tenses while it is staring at a spot in the forest.  
“What the - “ Titus starts to grumble but the scout motions him to shut up.

The scout dismounts quickly, kneels down and presses one ear against the ground. He gets on his feet again and draws his short sword.  
“Someone is approaching. By horse.”  
Titus and Indra dismount as well and and clear the broad trail. Titus leads his horse behind some bushes whereas Indra and the scout remain at the other side of the trail. She unsheathes her sword as well and wait. Soon, they hear a horse approaching. Its hooves plow through the muddy trail, making a sound that can be heard throughout the whole wood.

“No common scout. Too loudly,” the scout whispers to Indra. He's hiding with Indra behind a tree. Indra presses herself against the trunk and looks in the direction where the noises are coming from.  
A rider shows up and rides at full gallop along the trail. Indra and her companion jump on the path and forces the rider to stop her horse.

“Let me pass!” she shouts angrily.  
“Who are you?” Indra growls and holds the tip of her sword against the neck of the horse. The rider pushes back her hood and glares at Indra and the scout.  
“I've to go. Move!” the rider shoots back.  
“Barya, it's you!” the scout says suddenly.  
Barya nods quickly.  
“Gustus! Let me pass. I have news for General Edden.”  
“What news do you have?” Titus grumbles as he leaves his hiding place and leads his horse back on track.  
“Who's that?” Barya looks suspiciously at Titus.  
“Titus, Flamekeeper from Polis,” Indra snarls. “But we don't have time for small talk. What happened in Polis? Speak quickly!”  
Indra keeps her sword at the neck of Barya's horse and raises her left hand in anger to stresses her demand.

“The Commander is dead. The Nightbloods were killed by Trenton. He even killed the junior Nightbloods. Six in total. Trenton is the only remaining Nightblood.”  
Titus' face is getting pale but his voice doesn't waver.  
“So the conclave has already taken place and Trenton is the new Commander?”  
“No,” Barya says. The sentries of the Commander brought him to the dungeons.”  
Titus narrows his eyes. “That doesn't make sense. What happened to the Commander in the first place?”  
“He was killed by Trenton as well,” Barya reports. Titus eyes mirror the horrified looks Indra and Gustus exchange before his mask falls firmly back into place.  
Indra shifts her attention from Barya to Titus.  
“But when Trenton is the last Nightblood and the Commander is dead why hasn't he became the next Commander yet?” She withdraws her sword and scowls. “Trikru is weak without a Commander.”  
“There is no one who can carry out the ascension,” Barya says and motions to Titus. “They are waiting for your return, Flamekeeper.”  
Titus tenses. “Where the hell is my apprentice?”  
“That I can't tell you,” Barya answers. “The situation in Polis is still confusing.”  
Titus exhales loudly. “Who's in charge in Polis right now?” He takes a few steps to Barya, who is still sitting on her horse.  
“The tower guards have shut down the whole tower. They took Trenton prisoner,“ Barya reports. “Also, they have the body of the Commander. Outside the tower General Reewa controls the city gates and tries to maintain public security within the city walls. I spoke to her, she's the source of my information. I couldn't speak to someone from the tower.”  
“Okay then,” Titus says and turns to Indra and Gustus. “Let's hurry to Polis.” He nods to Barya, “leave now. General Edden is waiting for you.”  
He steps aside and lets Barya pass. She spurs her horse and rides away. Titus frowns and mounts his horse. Indra and Gustus get back on horseback, too. Gustus rides past them to keep on leading them to the Grounder's capital.

Titus tightens the grip on his reins and makes his horse move. His lips make a thin line as he clenches his jaws. Indra, still scowling, catches up with him.  
“There must be something wrong,” he grumbles.  
Indra's expression remains hard. “We will find out, Flamekeeper.”  
Titus doesn't reply, busy keeping up with Gustus who makes his horse gallop.

 

_fisa_ : healer


	6. Chapter 6

Altoona returns to her hut. Her face and hands clean, her damp her open. She shuts the door behind her and looks to Lexa and Lenna. The Nightblood is sitting cross-legged on the bed, the thin blanket wrapped around her. She listens carefully to Lenna who is just telling her how she killed a panther many years ago.  
“...and then the beast jumped in my direction and the only thing I could do was drawing my dagger. And I slit it open along its belly. But it wasn't dead yet. Suddenly, ...” Lenna stops and motions her head to Altoona.  
“Look who's back!”  
“Oh, she's awake,” Altoona cheers. She walks over to her and checks on her temperature. “Fine,” she says with an audible relief in her voice.  
“I had her drink a bowl of the broth. But there's enough left for another bowl,” Lenna reports and stands up slowly. Altoona nods.  
“Well,” Lenna adds, “I'm going back home now. Tam and Grizzn are going to hunt this afternoon and I promised to look after Lincoln while they are away.”  
“You're quite busy for a grandma,” Altoona teases.  
“We're hunters. As long as people are hungry we've work to do.” She brushes a loose strand of hair out of her face, puts it back behind her ear and smiles to Lexa.  
“More hunting stories tomorrow, child!”  
“She's a hunter,” Lexa says, pointing to Lenna and the awe in her voice makes both the woman laugh. 

Lenna grabs her cloak and turns to Altoona.  
“She told me her name is Lexa.”  
Altoona looks down and nods.  
“The Flamekeeper told me that as well.”  
“Why didn't you tell me - ,” Lenna starts to ask but Altoona cuts her off.  
“I didn't want her to remind you to your loss.”  
Lenna is about so say something in respond when there is a firm knock on the door.

“Enter,” Altoona calls loudly.  
The three of them look to the entrance and watch Bronn enter. Lenna tenses at the sight of the unknown, armed warrior.

“Altoona!” he says firmly. “Titus said I'd be under your command until we arrive in Polis.” He slightly bows his head to Altoona who stands in front of the table and next to Lenna.  
“Seems you're stuck with us,” Altoona replies coolly and a hint of annoyance taints her voice.  
“This is Bronn,” she explains to Lenna. “He,” she pauses for a second, “he accompanied the Flamekeeper from Polis to TonDC.” She motions to the woman next to her. “Bronn, this is Lenna, my neighbor and best hunter of the clan. Don't mess with her, she always looks for something she can use as bait for her traps!” she says playfully. Bronn huffs.

Lenna is still tense and stares at Bronn suspiciously.  
“What are your orders?” he asks and straightens.  
“Sit down,” Altoona commands. “We've to talk about some things.”  
He walks up to the table, passes Lenna and lets himself drop on a chair. Lexa still sits on the bed and watches Bronn, her expression unreadable.  
“You should go now,” Altoona says to the older woman. “Surely, Tam's already waiting for you.”  
“I agree. See you soon!” She gives Lexa another smile and exits. The door shuts behind her and Altoona's gaze shifts back to Bronn.

“Have you told anybody that Lexa is a Nightblood?” she asks him and narrows her eyes, her hands clasped behind her back.  
“No, I haven't”  
“Are you sure?” Her eyes drills into him.  
“Sha. I didn't tell anybody, not even Indra.”  
Altoona relaxes and braces her hands at the back of her chair, regarding Bronn who sits at the opposite side of the table.  
“The fisa does know,” she says after a while, “and her apprentice as well.”  
“Should I take them out?” he asks and puts his right hand on the hilt of his sword.  
“Are you insane?” Altoona yells at him but lowers her voice immediately. “They're our healer. They won't talk though we must be careful.”  
“Don't be pissed,” Bronn shoots back and rolls his eyes. “It was _you_ who told them about her being a Nightblood in the first place!”  
“I didn't tell them. They found out!” Altoona snaps back.  
“Anyway, people know and word might travel, even by accident. Titus wouldn't like that.”

Altoona considers his words and shifts her gaze from Bronn to Lexa. The Nightblood has lain down and rolled herself over to the other side of the bed.  
“She's sleeping,” Bronn says.  
“Yes.”  
“So when are we heading to Polis?”  
“I don't know yet. We're still waiting for the return of the scout. I won't put a Nightblood in danger. Plus, the fisa said she had to rest for a few days.”  
Bronn nods. “Did Titus give you any instructions how long we should stay here?”  
“He told me he would inform me via a separate scout about what is going on in Polis and whether we could bring Lexa to him.”  
“So actually we're sitting her and waiting for anything to happen?” Bronn wonders.  
“We actually do something. We are protecting her!”  
Bronn looks up to Altoona. “So what's my job? Standing guard in front of the hut and keeping watch?”  
“Keeping watch? As you did last night? You'd better not.”  
Bronn clenches his jaws but doesn't respond.  
Altoona straightens, crosses her arms over her chest and watches him in silence.

“You aren't a Flamescout, are you?” she asks eventually.  
Bronn huffs. “Not even close. I'm a vendor.”  
“A vendor?” she repeats in disbelief and narrows her eyes again. “Are you even a warrior?”  
“I grew up in Polis. My parents have a stall on the central market around the tower. We sell all kinds of leather products. I was trained as a warrior, too and I became _gona_ four summers ago.  
“So basically you're more a vendor than a warrior.”  
“Trading is dangerous in these days. Many trade routes are closed because of the wars between certain clans. And even if there isn't a declaration of war between clans, the trails aren't safe. As I said before, we sell leather products. Originally we had gotten most of our products from the Plain Riders clan but things changed. Blue Cliff clan and Rock clan have been at war for what feels like an eternity now.”  
“So you can't keep trading with the Plain Riders clan because you can't cross Blue Cliff and Rock Line clan territory,” Altoona says.  
Bronn nods. “Sha. I can't travel to the Plain Riders nor can they travel to us to Polis. They're trapped. So we're forced to trade with Ice Nation, which is,” he pauses, “sometimes difficult. They are different people, you know? They have different ways to negotiate.” Bronn lifts some of leather clothes which cover his upper body and points to a lot of scars. “The point is, my parents wanted me to become a warrior so that I can protect myself. Just in case I get in trouble on a trade journey.”  
“I see,” Altoona replies. “But how did you end up as a Flamescout for Titus? If I remember correctly, Titus has always been so picky when choosing Flamescouts.”  
“I worked as a messenger during the war against the Desert clan. A couple of times I had to deliver news from the battlefield to back to Polis. Because of the absence of the Commander I had to deal with Titus and General Reewa. I guess I didn't fuck things up completely because last winter Titus came to our stall on the market and asked me to come with him on a secret mission.” He taps his fingers against his chin, thinking. “Looking back, I'm surprised he even found me. I didn't mention to him that I worked at the market.”  
Altoona smiles. “That doesn't surprise me at all. Titus almost knows every family in Polis. And if he doesn't, he knows someone who does. Never underestimate the network a Flamekeeper has!”  
“I agree,” he says firmly.

“So you were a messenger,” Altoona continues and regards the warrior. “Didn't you tell us in the bunker you had watered the desert with the blood of the Desert clan?” She arches a brow.  
Bronn clears his throat. “Well, that's true. I mean, I did tell you that. And what I said is still true. Okay, technically I wasn't involved in any battles. But the rest of the army was.”  
“In the bunker your description of your tasks during the war sounded a bit different.” Altoona tries to hide her amusement but fails. Bronn's hands begin to sweat.

“Anyway,” she says, “it doesn't matter now. The past is in the past and we should focus on our current task and that's her,” she tilts her head in Lexa's direction. “Did you already get a place to sleep?”  
Due to the sudden change of the topic, Bronn relaxes visibly.  
“Yes. One of General Edden's warrior led me to the tents which have been set up to house all those warriors from the villages around TonDC.”  
Altoona narrows her eyes. “You can't help me protecting the Nightblood when you are sleeping at the other side of TonDC. Go and get your furs,” she commands. “You'll spend the night with Lexa and me in this hut.”  
Bronn opens his mouth to say something but Altoona glares already at him and it is obvious that she won't allow him questioning her decision. Bronn hesitates for a moment before he darts to the door and leaves. Altoona sighs loudly and begins to tidy up her little hut. She shifts a chair and the wooden chest to make room for a sleeping place for Bronn.

It's getting darker outside and Altoona lights more candles. She's just kneeling in front of her oven and checking on the fire as someone knocks on the door. The fisa returns. She enters the hut and closes the door behind her.

“Hello Altoona! How is she?”  
Altoona puts another log into the oven and shuts the hatch.  
“Better. The fever is lower. But she doesn't want to eat. I fed her with a broth Lenna made for her.”

The fisa nods and approaches the sleeping Nightblood. First she puts her hand on Lexa's forehead then she lets her hands slide along her throat. She removes the onion pack which has Nyko made earlier this day.

“Do you still have boiling water?”  
“Yes, plenty.”  
“She needs a fresh onion pack and another mug of same the tea made earlier. It isn't over yet.”  
The fisa takes two steps and prepares another onion pack on the table. Altoona takes a clean mug from the shelf and sets it on the table as well. Then she warms up the new onion pack in a little pot above the boiling water.  
“She complains about a sore throat,” Altoona reports. Then she smirks as she adds, “oh, and she wanted to leave us already. I don't know whether it was her stubbornness or the fever that caused this behavior.”

Carefully, Altoona lifts Lexa's head and upper body so that the fisa can fix the warm onion pack at Lexa's ear. She wraps a bandage around her head again and Altoona lies her down.

“Don't be fooled by her young age,” the fisa says. “When people are ill, when they are in pain, they show their true colors. So when she wants to head to Polis although she's still in pain, it's not only stubbornness, it's more. It's strength.” She covers Lexa with the blanket. The fisa walks back to the table where she puts some pieces of the bark of the black willow into the mug.

“Strength,” Altoona replies quietly and regards the sleeping Nightblood. The fisa fills boiling water into the mug with the bark. She sets the hot pot back on the oven and rummages in her pouch. She takes out a tiny brown bottle and adds a few drops of the liquid into the mug.  
“It'll help against the sore throat,” she explains. “As I work as a fisa, I have treated so many warriors. Some had shallow scratches and couldn't even walk anymore. Others were severely injured but still capable of fulfilling orders or giving commands. Strength isn't only about the physical ability to defeat someone in battle. There is also a mental strength. In battle, mental strength helps you even if you physical strength fades. I have seen this a lot. And in the end it can make the difference between life and death.” She takes a knife and stirs roughly the tea.

“That's interesting,” Altoona admits. “The Flamekeeper told me exactly the same many years ago.”  
“Then he's indeed very wise,” the fisa says and smiles. She checks on the tea again and removes the pieces of the bark. “It has cooled down a bit. She can drink it now.”

Altoona walks over to Lexa and wakes her up gently. The Nightblood makes a face as she realizes what she is supposed to drink. Altoona steadies her in a sitting position and the fisa helps her drinking. Lexa has almost finished the mug when Bronn rushes into the hut, bearing a rolled up fur and a dark gray blanket.  
“You sleep over there,” Altoona addresses him and points to the space between the table and the door. Bronn huffs quietly but prepares his sleeping place without any further comment. The fisa looks at him and shakes her head slightly in annoyance. Bronn sits down on the chair in front of his sleeping place. Lexa finishes her mug and stares at him. The fisa turns her back to them and packs her things back into her pouch.

“I'll drop by tomorrow. Keep an eye on her,” the fisa says and is about to leave.  
“We will,” Altoona replies and takes the fisa to the door. She opens it for her and watches her walking off into the darkness. Altoona spots two warriors at the common fire place who start to hand out sliced meat.

“I guess you didn't have dinner yet, did you?” she asks Bronn.  
“No, I didn't” Bronn says, busy to hold Lexa's gaze.  
Altoona hurries back inside and grabs a big wooden bowl.  
“I'll go and get us something for dinner. Stay with her!” she commands and darts outside.

Bronn crosses his arms over his chest. He and Lexa stare at each other, none of them dare to say a word. As Lexa narrows her eyes further he can't stand the silence any longer.  
“You're quite unfriendly, you know!” he starts to grumble. “I was the one who carries you through the woods before we met Indra and Altoona, remember?”  
Lexa grits her teeth and her eyes become dark. Bronn's nostrils flare and he is about to say something as the door opens and Altoona comes back with some slices of meat. She looks from Lexa to Bronn and sets the bowl on the table.

“No news so far. They are still waiting for Barya.”  
“Barya?” Bronn repeats and gives Altoona a questioning look.  
“Barya is the scout the General has sent to Polis,” she explains, puts several slices on a plate and slide the plate over the table to Bronn.  
“Eat!” she commands. “I'm not used to have guests her. So there's no cutlery left.” She shrugs. “But I think you won't mind anyway.”  
“I don't,” Bronn confirms and starts eating with his hands. “I'm also a warrior, you know.”

Lexa huffs quietly as he refers to himself as a warrior which make Altoona glares at her for a second. Her expression softens as she offers Lexa some meat.  
The Nightblood shakes her head. “Not hungry,” she repeats her answer from earlier this day.  
“Fine,” Altoona answers, “then the rest is mine. But you must drink another bowl of the broth Lenna brought us.” She sets the pot with the remaining broth on the oven to warm it up again.

Bronn finishes his meal and wipes his mouth on his sleeve.  
“What?” he grumbles suddenly to Lexa. Altoona looks up from the oven and turns. The Nightblood sits on the bed, her arms crossed over her chest.  
“What happened?” the woman asks Bronn.  
“She glares at me since I have entered the hut for the first time,” he says with a hard voice. Altoona rolls her eyes.  
“She's a toddler and she's ill. You're imagining things.”  
“It feels like she kinda sizes me up.”  
“She's a little child and has already gone through a lot of things. What do you expect?” She pauses. “Or is there a reason she looks at you this way?” Altoona tilts her head slightly and stops focusing on the pot on the oven for a moment.

“In her village, I killed a young girl. It was Titus' order. She seemed close to her.”  
“So you actually killed her family?” Altoona asks and arches a brow.  
“No, she wasn't family. She just hid her in her hut. I can't even recall her name,” he shrugs.  
“Melissa, her name was Melissa,” Lexa yells at them.  
“Oh, I see,” Altoona says and fills a little bowl with the broth. She puts the bowl on the table and crouches in front of the bed so she can look Lexa into the eyes.

“Listen! You're a Nightblood and Titus as well as the two of us,” she gestures between herself and Bronn, “will do anything to protect you. So when Titus gave the order to take out the girl, there must have been reasons. He doesn't take pleasure in giving kill orders.” She pauses. “Our ways are harsh but otherwise we wouldn't survive.” She squeezes Lexa's shoulder. “You'll get used to them.”

Lexa looks down and considers what Altoona has said to her. The warrior stands up and brings her the bowl. Without complaining she empties the bowl.

Suddenly, the three of them look to the window as they hear people shouting outside.  
“Stay here!” Altoona commands to Bronn and Lexa. “I'll go and find out what's going on.”  
She grabs her sword and darts to the door. Lexa climbs out of the bed and joins Bronn in front of the window. It's pitch dark outside, Lexa and Bronn can only see the flames of the common fireplace, which are glowing in the dark.

It doesn't take long until Altoona returns. She rushes into the hut and shut the door behind her loudly.  
“Barya returned from Polis,” she announces. “The sentries brought her to General Edden immediately. There will be a meeting at the common fire place soon.”  
“So who's gonna look after her?” Bronn asks. “We can't go both.”  
“We'll go together with Lexa. We'll wrap her in some cloths and take her with us. People might note when one of us is missing and that could lead to further questions,” Altoona explains.  
She checks on Lexa's cloths.  
“I can't wear your own cloths, Lexa. They didn't dried completely yet.” Altoona beelines for the wooden chest and starts rummaging. “Way too big,” she murmurs and sprints to the door again.  
“I'll ask Lenna. Surely she can help. I'll be right back,” she calls and disappears into the dark again.

Bronn looks out of the window, trying to make out any movements around the fire. A signal horn is blown three times, just as Altoona returns from Lenna, carrying some clothes for the Nightblood.

“Hurry!” Altoona calls and puts the new cloths on Lexa. She finishes the dressing by wrapping the Nightblood into the blanket and puts a knit cap on her head. She exits, Lexa in her arms and Bronn close behind them. They take a few steps and arrive at the meeting point. It's going to be a freezing night, Altoona checks on Lexa's knit cap again.

Many armed warriors have gathered around the fire, among them children and elder people of TonDC. The two warriors who are responsible for the fire, take their rakes and pull some bigger trunks from the middle of the fire, to lower the flames. General Edden shows up, accompanied by Barya and two of his sentries. The crowd parts, giving them room to approach the fire. Silence seeps in for a few moments before General Edden starts to speak.

“People of TonDC!” he calls loudly.  
“We have just received the confirmation that our beloved Commander died last night.”  
A murmur goes through the crowd.  
“He was killed by one of his Nightbloods. We don't know the whole story about it yet. But we must prepare for the worst case. There isn't a new Commander yet. But the Flamekeeper is already on his way to Polis to oversee the transmission of the flame.” He inhales deeply and shouts, “until Trikru has a new Commander, we prepare for war!” He draws his sword and holds it into the air. The crowd begins chanting. “War! War! War!”

Lexa turns her head and looks at the moving crowd, her eyes wide.

The General lets his gaze wander over the crowd and continues speaking.  
“Until there is a new Commander chosen, we are on our own!” He twirls his sword to stress his words. “Prepare your weapons!” People cheer and make war cries.

Altoona narrows her eyes.  
“I don't like the whole situation,” she whispers to Bronn and presses Lexa closer to her.  
“Neither do I,” Bronn admits.

The General shouts some more commands to his warriors before he closes the meeting.  
The people spread out in all directions, everyone busy to fulfill their tasks.  
Another scout prepares for a ride to Polis and Edden gives him final instructions.

“Hold her,” Altoona says suddenly to Bronn and hands over the Nightblood to him. “I'll catch up with Barya, perhaps I can get some more information. Go back to the hut with her!”

Bronn returns with Lexa to the hut. They enter and he sets her on the back. He takes off her knit cap and removes the blanket she's wrapped in. He takes off her leather jacket as well and taps with his hand on the bed. “Lie down and don't make any noise,” he demands. Lexa does as she was told and Bronn lets himself drop on his chair. He's tense and runs his hand through his hair. He glances to Lexa and notes her questioning look. He clenches his jaws and avoids her gaze. 

Both startle when the door is opened quietly and Altoona sneaks in. Bronn looks at her in confusion.  
“It's okay, she's awake anyway,” he grumbles, obviously thinking Altoona tries not to wake Lexa.  
Altoona glances to Lexa and nods. “I know. Come outside, I have news.”  
Bronn jumps to his feet and follow her outside. She leads him behind her hut where another warrior is waiting for them.

“Who's that?” he asks suspiciously.  
The warrior pushes back her hood. “I'm Barya. I was for General Edden in Polis.”  
Bronn recognizes her and nods.  
“So what's the matter?” he asks Altoona.  
“General Edden didn't tell us the whole truth,” Altoona reports and motions to Barya to continue.  
“There can't take place a conclave to choose the next Commander,” Barya reports. “Trenton, the Nightblood who killed the Commander, killed the other Nightbloods as well, even the junior Nightbloods.  
“Wait!” Bronn says, desperately trying to process the given information. “So there is only one Nightblood left who can be the next Commander? Which clan is he from?”  
“Plain Riders, “Barya says clipped.  
“Sounds like treason,” Bronn grumbles.  
“Before we jump in conclusion we need to see the big picture. We need more information about the situation in Polis,” Altoona says.  
“So what should we do?” Bronn asks.  
“Act normal,” Altoona whispers. “And wait. If there's some kind of treason going on we will learn about that soon.”  
Barya nods. “The General sends scouts every few hours. I'll rest now so he can send me tomorrow to Polis again.”  
“Sounds like a good plan,” Altoona praises her. “Keep us informed!”  
“I will. Now go back into the hut. I'll wait here for a few moments so no one can see us together.”

Altoona and Bronn sneak back into the hut. Altoona immediately scans the little room for Lexa. She finds her in her bed, sleeping. The Nightblood lies on her belly, her right hand under the pillow. Carefully, Altoona lifts the pillow and a smile touches her face. With her right hand, Lexa is holding Altoona's dagger while she's sleeping. Gently, Altoona pulls the dagger from her hand and shifts her pillow before the puts the dagger under the pillow again.

“We should rest, too,” she says to Bronn and walks up to the door and locks the entry with a bar. Bronn doesn't object and drops himself on his sleeping place. He adjusts his furs and blanket to find a comfortable position. Altoona checks on the oven for a last time and extinguishes most of the candles. She lies down next to the little Nightblood and it doesn't take long before the two warriors fall asleep as well.

 

 _fisa_ : healer  
_gona_ : warrior, the expression “gona” is used for trained warriors after passing the initiation ritual

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading my story :-)  
> Next chapter will be online in January. 
> 
> At some point in the future there will be a little time jump and the story will change to Lexa's point of view.


	7. Chapter 7

Sundown has set in and Gustus decreases the speed. He pulls softly at the reigns and his horse slows to a trot. With his right hand he wipes the sweat from his face and grabs his water canteen, which is carried in a pouch dangling at his saddle. Panting, he opens it and takes several gulps. Indra and Titus catch up with him, flanking him on each side.

“We are almost there,” Gustus says to Titus.  
The three of them make their horses stop.  
The Flamekeeper doesn't respond. Instead, he stares into the distance, watching the red flame burn on top of the tower. He clenches his jaws and holds tight to the reigns.

“Will General Reewa let us pass to the tower, Flamekeeper?” Indra asks worried.  
“That's just what I was wondering,” Titus admits, still staring at the tower in the distance.  
“I'm thinking about whether it would be wise to just appear at the main gate and let the sentries know who we are. Something is wrong I can almost smell it.”

Indra tenses, narrows her eyes but waits for the Flamekeeper to continue.

Gustus puts his water canteen back into the pouch, unwillingly to start riding the last two miles because it is obvious that Titus is about to share more of his thoughts.

“I was thinking about what Barya told us. She said Trenton had killed the Commander as well as all the other Nightbloods. And I was wondering,” he adds, “why I feel there's something wrong with it.”  
Gustus tilts his head to Titus. “It feels wrong because it is. Slaughtering Nightbloods without official conclave is against our rules,” he grumbles. ”Taking out the junior Nightbloods is against our rules even more.”  
“That's not what I mean. I wasn't referring to the slaughtering itself, I was thinking about the message Barya told us. It can't be the truth.”

Gustus' free hand clenches a fist as he addresses the Flamekeeper.  
“Do you really want to say that Barya is a liar?” he growls. “She's not. She's loyal to Trikru. And to the Commander.”

“She might not have deliberately lied to us,” Titus clarifies.  
“What made you think that in the first place?” Gustus asks.

Titus' gaze shifts from the tower to Gustus.  
“She said the General had told her that Trenton had killed all the other Nightbloods, six in total.”  
“And?” Indra presses, still tense.  
“When I left Polis seven days ago, there were eight Nightbloods. So when Trenton was the eighth Nightblood and he killed six of his companions - “  
“Then there would be another Nightblood left,” Indra completes Titus thought. “So the question is, what happened to Nightblood number seven.”  
Titus looks to Indra. “See? I've been thinking about that for hours.”

“There is a range of possibilities why Barya's number of dead Nightbloods differs from the correct one,” Gustus starts thinking aloud. “Perhaps General Reewa wasn't aware of the whole number of Nightbloods training in Polis. Barya said the tower had been shut so there was likely no chance to validate the number of slaughtered Nightbloods.”

“We don't know,” Indra injects and leans a bit forward so she can face Gustus. “Maybe General Reewa told her the correct number and Barya just messed up and confused numbers.”  
“She would never do that,” Gustus yells at her. “She's one of the best messenger we have.”

Titus stops the beginning row between Gustus and Indra. “Anyway, with an additional Nightblood in Polis, there are a lot more options what might have happened and what will happen in our capital.”

Gustus nods. “Flamekeeper, you are in charge of the tower guard. They have always been loyal to you and the former Flamekeepers. I suggest you talk to them first.”

Titus' face betrays no emotion as he agrees with the warrior.  
“I'd prefer it that way, too.”  
“So the question is how do we get into Polis without being caught by General Reewa,” Indra says. “Aren't there any secrets tunnels from the outside of Polis into the tower?”

Titus' eyes grow darker at the question. “As far as I know, there aren't any,” he answers clipped.

Darkness hat set in when Titus and his two companions finally can see the mighty city walls of Polis. Since Titus knows the trails around Polis very well, he has taken over the leadership and he leads Gustus and Indra for the last miles to the city gate.

Indra makes her horse run faster to catch up with Titus.  
“So what are doing?” she asks him.  
“We'll do what they expect us to do,” he answers. “We are heading to the city gate, tell them who we are and demand entry.”  
Indra navigates her horse closer to Titus'.

“Flamekeeper, with all due respect, but is that really wise? Whoever is in charge now in Polis could arrest us the moment we arrived at the city gate.”  
“I had the same thought,” he admits to Indra. “But there isn't really another option for us to enter Polis. So this is important:” He waves to Gustus to make him come closer. Titus looks suspiciously in all directions. He narrows his eyes and begins to whisper.

“We'll be at the city gate soon. Be careful with speaking, if possible, don't say anything but your name and your hometown.” He looks from Indra to Gustus, who are flanking him. “Don't mention Barya or anything she told us. Don't mention Altoona or the little child we brought to TonDC.” He continues giving his instructions. “Originally, I started from Polis with three warriors, two of them died. Don't talk about the loss, either. If they ask for Bronn, we'll tell them that he's ill and need to rest in TonDC.”

Indra nods and tries to suppress the urge to roll her eyes when she hears Bronn's name. She fails.

“So whatever will happen to us, remember you both are just two warriors from TonDC who were sent to take me home to Polis safely. Apart from this, you have to pretend you don't know anything else.” Titus whisper changes to a growling. “Is this understood?”

“Sha, Flamekeeper,” answer the to warriors in unison.  
“Let's go then,” Titus calls and make his horse gallop.

Within minutes they arrive at the city gate. Its two big wooden doors are closed. Several heavy armed warrior are standing in front of the gate. In the two guard towers next to the gate are even more warriors.  
Titus makes out archers with drawn bows within the guard towers.

One of the warriors approach them.  
“Who are you and what do you want?” he asks harshly.

The three riders make there horses stop simultaneously and push back their hoods.  
As discussed earlier, Titus is the one who speaks.

“It's me, Titus the Flamekeeper. Let me and my two scouts pass!”  
The warrior from the city gate turns to the doors and motions for another warrior to come.  
“A torch! Quick!” he commands.  
The other warrior takes a torch out of the torch holder and hurries to them. He hands the torch over to the first warrior, who uses the light to verify that the man on the horse is indeed Titus.

He looks at Titus for a moment and then he calls to the other sentries, “It's the Flamekeeper! Inform General Reewa. Now!” He tilts his head to Indra and Gustus and lowers his voice. “Who are _they_ , Titus?”  
“These are Indra and Gustus from TonDC. General Edden sent them to take me back to Polis safely.”  
There's another question in his eyes but the warrior just lifts his arm and shouts to the other warriors, “open the gate for them. Make sure his two companions are really Trikru.”

With a groaning noise the doors of the city gate are opened by several sentries. Titus and his companions dismount and lead their horses through the gate. The sentries shut the doors immediately after they have entered Polis. It's unusually quiet in the grounder's capital. Titus can only make out warriors in the streets of Polis. He glanced to the tower. The red flame on top of the tower is still burning.

Several warriors approach them and look suspiciously at Gustus and Indra.  
“We are told you were Trikru,” one of them snarls, “prove it!”  
Indra scowls and is about to draw her dagger but Gustus is faster and presses his hand around her right wrist. “Don't!” he hisses to her.  
One of the warriors holds a torch near their faces and checks their faces for any tattoos or scars.  
“Okay, you're Trikru,” the warrior says eventually and points to two warriors. “You! Take the horses to the stable!”  
The two women walk over to them quickly, take the reigns from Titus and his companions and lead the horses away.

The sentry, who spoke to Titus first, turns to the Flamekeeper.  
“Flamekeeper, General Reewa ordered to take you to her as soon as you return to Polis.”  
“I thought that all along,” Titus grumbles. “Quick! I've work to do!”  
The sentry nods. “I see.” Then he takes a step to Gustus and Indra. “You can't stay outside. General Reewa has imposed a night-time curfew. One of the warriors will lead you to the guard house where you can stay for the night. Or do you have family in Polis?”  
“That's not necessary, thank you,” Gustus replies. “I have a cousin here in Polis, he will take us in.” He looks to Indra and nudges her with his elbow. “Let's go, Indra!”  
Indra huffs slightly but follows Gustus.

“You've never mentioned that you have family in Polis,” Indra says after they are out of earshot.  
“That's right, I haven't.”  
“Why?”  
“Because I don't have any family here.”  
“Then where the hell are we going to?”  
“To the tower,” Gustus says clipped.  
Indra scowls. “Why? We are not allowed to say anything, remember?”  
“We don't have to reveal our secrets to get some new information.”  
“They will kill both of us before we can talk to anyone. You're insane!” Indra grumbles.  
“I'm not insane. I'm Trikru. And so are you. Our loyalty should be with the future Commander and the Flamekeeper.”  
“I _am_ loyal. How can you even doubt that?”  
“Good,” Gustus says. “So let's hurry, time might be running out!”

 

****

 

In the meantime, several armed warriors have encircled Titus and take him toward the guard house. They drag him upstairs and then lead him to one of the rooms. Another guard is standing in front of the door.  
Titus remains still, his face unreadable. The guard opens the door for them and lets him enter. Titus looks around. He has been here before though in the past it was more common that the General meets up with him within the tower.

General Reewa is standing in front of the windows, two Trikru warriors flanking her on each side. Titus stares at her, his eyes hard and his hands balled into fists.

General Reewa regards the Flamekeeper, her right hand on the hilt of the sword that is hanging at her hip. Her long dark hair contains many braids and she has several black streaks running over her cheeks. Behind the three of them Titus can make out a makeshift throne, hastily made of a big wooden chair.

“What's all this supposed to mean?” Titus almost spits the words, no longer hiding his anger.  
“The Commander is dead,” Reewa says, her voice cool and controlled. “I've taken responsibility for Polis since then.” The tall woman straightens, holding his gaze.

“By playing Commander?” Titus growls. “You should know better than that!”  
“Flamekeeper,” Reewa says and takes a step nearer to Titus,” no one knew where you are, nor when you would return to Polis.” She pauses for a moment. “We had to prepare for the worst case.”  
“Speaking of worst case. What happened in the tower?”

“Trenton, the mad Nightblood from the Plain Riders clan, who just came to Polis a full moon ago, killed the Commander. Afterward, he slaughtered every other Nightblood he could find. As far as I know he even took out your apprentice.”

Titus tenses at the mention of his apprentice but doesn't respond to Joss' destiny.  
“So Trenton is the last living Nightblood?” Titus demands to know.  
“No, he isn't,” Reewa reports. “My warriors could catch Pretoria on her way back to the tower.”  
“Pretoria? Where is she now?”  
“Here in the guard house. She's safe. My warriors are protecting her day and night.”  
“At least we have two remaining Nightbloods,” Titus summarizes. “We need a new Commander as soon as possible. Bring her to me, I have to return with her to the tower. If she decides to challenge Trenton, conclave will take place tomorrow at dawn.”

Reewa narrows her eyes. “Conclave? Flamekeeper, there are only two Nightbloods left and one of them is a mad warrior from the Plain Riders clan.” Her voice is filled with anger. “How can you even consider to let him take part at the conclave? That's insane.” Reewa's fingers tighten on the hilt of her sword. “I will not have my own niece been slaughtered by this Plain Rider warrior,” the General yells at Titus. “I will not let that happen!”

The two sentries, who are flanking Reewa, glance at each other. 

“The spirit of the last Commander will choose the next one,” Titus growls. “Not you. Not me.”  
“Stop with this religious bullshit, you will make Pretoria the next Commander,” she commands, “now! No Plain Riders warrior will lead Trikru as long as I'm in charge here!” she continues yelling at Titus and adds,” he's not trustworthy, his people still believe in the return of the red Commander. Trenton will destroy our clan the moment he's Commander. He's insane. You should have killed him immediately when he showed up in Polis.”

Titus remains calm.  
“You have no right to decide Trenton's fate, nor have you anything to do with the conclave. You're the General of the army of Polis. The Flamekeeper am I.”

The two sentries next to Reewa look at her and await a command to arrest Titus. But the General slightly shakes her head. Whereas Titus takes a step toward her.

“Remember,” he growls, “with Joss dead I'm the last Flamekeeper. I'm the only one who can carry out the ascension. You can kill me. You can arrest me. But that won't make Pretoria Commander.” He lowers his voice a bit. “Trikru is _weak_ without a Commander!”

The two sentries share another look but their faces remain unreadable.

“Sentries,” Titus suddenly addresses the two men next to Reewa. “Did you listen? She's a traitor. Arrest her!” he commands.

Reewa laughs out loud. “Flamekeeper, you might be in charge of your tower guard. But these are my warriors. They'll do what I command.”

The sentries are tense but they don't move.

“They are _gonas_ after all” Titus says, voice still hard.

“So what? We all are _gonas_. Well, except _you_ of course” she says and waves off him with her left hand.

“You three swore an oath, remember?”

The sentries share a glance once again but don't respond to Titus question.

“Repeat your oath!” Titus yells and points to the sentry to Reewa's left.  
The sentry straightens and begins to quote.

“ _I do swear that I will support and defend our clan against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the Commander and the orders of the warriors appointed over me._ ”

Reewa's lips form a thin line. “Enough! Arrest him,” she commands to the sentry who has just spoken. He walks up to fulfill the order as the Flamekeeper points to the second sentry. “You! Do you remember the second paragraph of your oath?”

The sentry to Reewa's right steps forward and quotes.

“ _Also, I believe in the spirits of the Commanders and the power of Nightblood and therefore, I do swear to protect the order of the Flame._ ”

The first sentry is standing next to Titus now but instead of arresting the Flamekeeper, he stares at Reewa and the other sentry.

“...against all enemies, foreign and domestic!” Titus repeats and he is almost yelling at them.  
“General Reewa wants to end the leadership of the Commanders. She's the real enemy!”

“Are you all insane? I want you to make Pretoria the next Commander,” Reewa shouts at Titus.  
“Of course you want to,” Titus snaps back. “For your own advantage. By making a five-year old junior Nightblood, your niece, Commander you can not only take over the leadership of Polis but also the leadership of the whole Trikru clan. You're a traitor.”

Then Titus addresses the sentries. “Prove that you are still loyal. Arrest her. For the Commander! For the Flame!”

“For the Commander! For the Flame!” the two warriors shout in unison and the one next to Reewa pins her down and takes her weapon. The other one gets a rope and they tie Reewa's hands up behind her back.

“Who's the General's deputy?” Titus demands to know.  
“That is Nebras, Flamekeeper,” one of the sentries answers.  
“Is he loyal to the Commander and the flame?”  
“Yes, Flamekeeper, he is.  
“Then go and bring him here. Quick!” Titus demands. The sentry darts to the door and disappears. A moment later he's back with a tall warrior.

Titus informs Nebras about what happened.

“As long as General Reewa is arrested you're in charge of the army of Polis,” Titus announces.  
“What will happen to her?” Nebras asks.  
Titus glares at Reewa, now gagged and tied to her makeshift throne. “The next Commander will have to deal with her. In the meanwhile, keep her alive.”  
Nebras nods.  
“Conclave might take place tomorrow at dawn, depending on Pretoria's decision,” Titus says, ”inform your warriors and the people of Polis.”

“Everything will be prepared, Flamekeeper,” Nebras answers before he leaves the room and starts shouting commands to his warriors.

Titus turns to the sentries.  
“Take me to Pretoria.”

 

 _gona_ : warrior, the expression “gona” is used for trained warriors after passing the initiation ritual

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you think about the story!


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

After a few minutes running, Gustus and Indra arrive at the tower. Indra spots the main entrance. The doors are closed and no one is to be seen.  
“We'll try the side entrance,” Gustus whispers to her and runs to a two-story building on the right side of the tower. Indra follows him without questioning.

Then, without warning, Gustus grabs Indra's arm and pulls her behind a deserted market stall. Both crouch down and two Trikru warriors show up. They are heavy armed, one of them bearing a torch.

“I don't get it why we have to go on patrol at night,” the younger warrior grumbles. “It's freezing cold, even without curfew nobody would sneak around here.”

“Shof op!” the older warrior replies harshly. “It's our duty to serve the General.”  
The two warriors stop walking near the market stall where Gustus and Indra are hiding.  
“It's finally time for a new Commander. I'm already fed up with Reewa,” the younger one says.  
“The time of the Commanders is over!” his companion calls and lifts his right arm to stress his expression by moving his torch. “Heda's dead!”

Gustus and Indra are still crouching behind the market stall. They don't have eye contact to the warriors but listen carefully. Indra tightens the grip on the hilt of her sword.

“There will be a new Commander soon,” the younger one objects and narrows his eyes.  
“Don't count on it,” his companion says with a smug grin.  
“What do you mean?” he twirls around and pushes the older warrior forceful against another market stall, a few yards away from Gustus and Indra.  
The warrior glares at him and holds his torch like weapon.  
“There are only two Nightbloods left. And no one wants to be led by a Plain Riders warrior or by a little child.” His smug grin widens. “And I know Reewa thinks so as well.”  
“That's not your choice to make,” the younger warrior yells at him, not intimidated by the burning torch the other one points in his direction.  
“This decision has already been made,” he laughs at him. “Trikru must be led by a Trikru. So forget the whole Commander thing and let's go or I'll burn you alive!”  
The young man takes a step back and lets go of him. His companion passes him and raises his hand with the torch once again.  
“The Commander is dead!” he shouts. “Reewa will rule!”

The young warrior sees red. He runs up to his companion, jumps against his back to make the other warrior fall over. The older man looses his torch, which rolls into a puddle of water and extinguishes with a loud hiss.

Gustus and Indra move slightly away from their hiding place to be able to watch the beginning fight.

In anger, the younger warrior tries to beat up his companion, but fails. The older man rolls over and gets rid of him. He jumps to his feet and kicks hard against his opponent's head and belly.

Indra scowls. She and Gustus exchange a look and dart to the warriors. None of them sees Gustus and Indra coming. Just as the older warrior is about to kick the young man once again, Indra raises her sword and presses the tip of it against the warrior's throat.  
“Don't do that again, _natrona_ , she snarls at him.  
Gustus runs over to the warrior lying on the ground and helps him up.  
“You're okay?” he demands to know.  
The younger man breaths in ragged gaps but nods.

“Should I take him out, Gustus?” Indra asks. “He's a traitor.”  
“Not yet. He knows things. He might be useful later. We're taking him with us.”  
“What about him?” Indra tilts his head to the young warrior standing next to Gustus.  
“He seems trustworthy. But he'll better come with us, too.”

The young warrior lifts his right hand and touches the back of his head. He hisses quietly when he reaches the point where he was kicked. Most of his expressions is covered under a metal mask which he is wearing over the lower part of his face. He drops his arms and regards Gustus and Indra.  
“What are you up to?” he asks them.

“Don't talk to them,” the older warrior yells at him and huffs. “They might not even be Trikru!”  
“The second one tonight who questions me being Trikru,” Indra growls and lets her sword pierce a shallow scratch along the warrior's neck. “Don't even dare to say I'm not Trikru or you'll die Trikru-style, by a thousand cuts.”  
The prisoner scowls visibly but doesn't respond.

Gustus turns to the younger warrior.  
“Seems you're still loyal to the Commander and the Flame.”  
“Sha,” the young man answers and straightens.  
Gustus regards him for a moment. “Good,” he says eventually. “Then you can join us. We need to get inside the tower.”

Gustus points to the house behind them.  
Indra huffs. “That's not the tower. How would that help?”  
“It contains the horse stable for the Commander's precious war horses.” He pauses for a moment. “And there's a tunnel from the stable to the tower,” he reveals.  
“True,” says the young warrior. “But the tunnel will be heavily guarded for sure. Impossible to get inside unseen.”  
“He has a point,” Indra admits.  
“Are you familiar with the tower and the sentries protecting it?” Gustus asks.  
The young man nods. “My mother worked in the stable for a long time. I used to visit her there often when I was younger. I sneaked around with my brothers and my sister.”  
Gustus narrows his eyes.  
“So where would the sentries keep an important prisoner?”

The older warrior huffs. “How should the son of a stable girl know that?”  
“ _Shof op, natrona_!” Indra snarls at him.  
“In the dungeons. Usually they would take the prisoners there,” the younger man replies eventually.  
“So the side entrance at the stable is the only way in?” Indra asks.  
“There might be another way to get inside. But we would have to climb up a bit.” The young man  
turns to Gustus. “But I still don't know what your plan is,” he says, his voices tainted with suspicion.  
“We need information about the remaining Nightbloods in the tower,” Gustus explains. “We are loyal to the flame and they might be in danger. It's a long story but we don't have time for this now. You have to trust us on that”  
The young man looks from Gustus to Indra and hesitates for a moment. He considers Gustus' words and then starts walking off.  
“Follow me. Quietly!”

 

**** 

 

Meanwhile in the guard house:  
A warrior leads Titus to a room in the forth floor of the guard house. The guards in front of the door open the door for him and let him enter the tiny room. It's a dorm for six. Three wooden bunk beds are standing along the walls. A little girl is sitting on one of the beds. She is wrapped into a blanket and stares through the window outside. She startles visibly as Titus enters the room. She tosses the blanket on the bed, jumps to her feet and approaches Titus.

“Flamekeeper,” she says and bows her head.  
“The Commander is dead,” Titus says with a firm voice and looks to her pale face.  
“Yes,” she answers clipped.  
“You know what this means.”  
“General Reewa said you would make me the next Commander.”  
“If you win the conclave, I will.”  
Pretoria widens her eyes. “There will be a conclave? But my aunt said...-”  
“It doesn't matter what she said. If there's another Nightblood alive then you'll have to defeat it to become Commander.”

The little girl tenses visibly.  
“Pretoria,” Titus says in a firm voice and lies his right hands on her shoulder. “You've seen five summers so far. That means you are still a junior Nightblood. You don't have to take part in the conclave. If Trenton is still alive he can become heda and you can wait for the next conclave. Consider this!”

Pretoria crosses her arms over her chest. Her eyes grow dark and make Titus pull back his arm.  
“I will volunteer, Flamekeeper!”  
“Pretoria, are you sure?” Titus' gaze drills into her. “Once the conclave has started, no one will be able to help you.”  
Pretoria holds his gaze and straightens.  
“Ai laik Pretoria kom Trikru. I'm the last Trikru Nightblood. I must fight, Flamekeeper, I must,” she says, conflicted.  
“Well, the decision isn't final yet. I'll ask you tomorrow at dawn again.” Titus voice doesn't waver as he adds,”if you decide to volunteer then you'll fight to the death.”

Silence seeps in for a moment as they stare at one another.

“However, you have to go back to the tower with me, now!” Titus demands and turns to the door.

 

**** 

 

The young warrior sneaks with his new companions around the stable house and leads them behind the tower. Indra has still her sword at the throat of her prisoner.  
“Make one noise and you're dead,” she hisses to him and makes him move.

Behind the tower they press themselves at the tower's walls and sneak slowly to another old house on the right.

“You're leading us to the temple,”Gustus says.  
“Sha.”  
“Is there a tunnel leading to the dungeons as well?” Gustus asks.  
“Exactly.”

They arrive at the temple's backside. It's another two-story building from the old world.

“We need to get on the roof,” the young warrior explains. “There is a hatch in the roof, which we can use to get into the temple but...,” he suddenly hesitates.  
“What is it?” Gustus demands to know.  
“While climbing up to the roof the sentries might see us. They could spot us easily and shoot their arrows at us. We would be an easy target.”

Gustus leans slightly forward and looks up to the tower.  
“Difficult to say whether the sentries are standing behind the windows.”  
“We need a distraction so we can enter the temple without them noticing,” Indra whispers to them.

Gustus moves his jaws forth and back and hums.  
“Wait!” he says and raises his right hand. “I have an idea. Wait here. Don't move. I'll be right back.”

He doesn't give Indra and the others a chance to say anything and darts away, his body always near to the tower wall. Indra sees him disappear into the dark and scowls. She tightens the grip on the hilt of her sword and waits for anything to happen.

None of them speaks. They listen for any kind of noises. The young warrior looks around and shrugs.

Suddenly, there it is. They hear the glass shatter and the sound of horses which run out of the stable.  
The young warrior takes a few steps back along the tower, walking in the direction the noises are coming from. It's the house which contains the stable for the Commander's horses.

A flicker of light from the stable catches his eyes. Before he can process what's going on Gustus returns and takes him back to Indra and their prisoner.  
“What have you done?” Indra asks as he comes back.  
“I broke into the stable, freed the horses and started a fire,” he reports.  
“I can hear them shouting commands,” Indra says. “That's our chance. Let's go.”

The younger warrior looks up to the tower like Gustus did before and darts to a tree which grows behind the temple. He starts climbing up the tree and motions the others to follow him.

“I won't go,” the prisoner grumbles and crosses his arms over his chest. “This is a suicide mission.”  
“You'll climb up or I'll take you out right here,” Indra snarls at him again.  
The warrior huffs and follows his companion and Gustus onto the tree.

Indra waits until the three warrior are almost at the level of the temple's roof. She sheaths her sword and begins to climb up. It doesn't take her long to catch up with her companions and the prisoner. She draws one of her daggers from her belt and watches the others. The young warrior is the first one who jumps from the tree onto the flat roof. Its surface is slippy and covered with moss. Gustus follows him and motions to Indra's prisoner to do the same and then turns to the younger warrior.

“Where is the entr-” he begins to ask as he is pushed down by the prisoner who has entered the roof in one fluid motion. Quickly he takes Gustus' sword and holds the tip of the sword against his neck. He sets his right foot on Gustus' back, straightens and looks at Indra with a smug grin.

“And now you can watch your friend die!” he shouts to her. He puts both his hand on the hilt of Gustus' sword and lift his arms quickly and it is obvious to Indra that he is going to cut off Gustus' head. She jumps onto the roof as well, her hand tightened around her dagger. Before she can attack him, the older warrior groans, falls slowly to the side and lets go of Gustus' sword. Despite the darkness Indra can see the tip of a sword coming out of his belly. She looks up and watch the younger warrior removing his sword from his former companion. He wipes it clean at the clothes of the dead warrior and sheathes it back into his sheath. Gustus stands up and grabs his sword.

“We must leave!” he young warrior hisses to Gustus and Indra and walks up to an entrance in the roof. Gustus and Indra look at each other and follow him.

The young warrior bents over and pulls strongly at the hatch in the roof. With a cracking noise he opens the small entrance and looks inside.

“It's clear, we can enter,” he says. “We have to jump or let us fall down. There isn't a ladder. Be careful, the room is used as a stock for useless things from the old world.”  
He turns around and lies down on his belly, then he clings his hands around the frame of the hatch. Slowly he lets himself glide into the room until Gustus and Indra can only see his hands. He lets go of the frame and falls into the dark room. He lands on his feet and lay his hand on the hilt of his sword. The young warrior blinks and turns around.

“It's okay, come down!” he whispers to his companions.  
The two warriors enter the temple the way he did.  
The room is full of technical devices of the old world. Lots of computers, screens and other stuff are piled up. All these things are lying around like trash since the grounders have no use for them.

“I haven't been here before,” Gustus says quietly as he looks around. “I didn't know what the temple looks like from the inside but for sure I didn't expect it to look like _this_.  
Indra rolls her eyes. “Let's go on.”

The young warrior removes his metal mask which covered half of his face and puts it into a pocket of his worn leather jacket. They walks over to the only door of the room, which leads to the hallway. There is a burning torch in the torch holder on the hallway's wall and now Gustus and Indra are able to see the full face of their companion. He has blue eyes and short ash blond hair. To their surprise it's the face of a boy, not even a _gona_ yet. The fourteen-year old is tall for his age and his shoulders are broad but he still has the face of a child. There's no sign of a beginning growth of beard on his smooth skin, neither has he any face tattoos. 

Gustus regards him for a moment. “How come you know these places so well?”  
“I grew up here. My whole family served the Commanders. My father was a sentry here. One of my brothers is a flame scout. My eldest sister looks after the young Nightbloods. I spent my whole childhood strolling around the temple and the tower.”

Gustus nods. “I see. And surely you have a name, boy.” He gestures to the woman next to him. “This is Indra. And I'm Gustus.”  
“I'm Quint,” the boy says clipped. Then he looks carefully into the hallway.  
“We have to go downstairs,” he whispers. “From the basement runs a tunnel to the tower's dungeons.”

They step into the hallway. Quint sneaks to the stairs and motions the others to follow him. Slowly, he begins to walk down the stairs. They are made of stone. They move carefully, trying to avoid any noises. As they arrive at the ground floor, Quint looks to the left and to the right and stops moving. He turns to his companions, his left index finger on his lips. They hear distant chatter.

Suddenly, Quint takes a step back and presses his body against the wall. A sentry walks through the ground floor and crosses the stairwell without noticing them. They wait for a moment, then Quint leans forward a bit and checks the stairs down to the basement again. He sneaks downstairs, Gustus and Indra right behind him.

They arrive unseen at the basement. The floor doesn't have any burning torches. Without hesitating, Quint leads them quickly to one of the tunnels.  
“Be careful,” he whispers. “The tunnel doesn't run straight forward.”

It's a short distance to get to the tower's dungeons. The walls are old and wet. They can hear the sound of water drops dripping down from the ceiling. Quint grabs Gustus' arm.  
“We're in the dungeons now, right under the tower.”

The warrior nods. “Let's see whether we can find the Plain Rider Nightblood here.”  
Indra's face is unreadable as she looks around in the badly lit dungeons.  
“Do you know Trenton?” Gustus asks Quint. “Can you describe him to us?”  
Quint shakes his head.  
“According to my sister he came to Polis a full moon ago. I don't know much. He's young. But older than the other Nightbloods. Can't remember anything more, Gustus.”  
“Let's hope they don't have that many prisoners here,” Indra grumbles.  
“Don't worry. “ Gustus huffs. “The late Commander wasn't known for letting people alive...”

 

**** 

 

Titus and Pretoria exit her room and step into the hallway. Several warriors are waiting for them. One one of them approaches Titus.  
“Flamekeeper,” he says and bows his head, “ Nebras sent us to accompany you two to the tower.”  
Titus nods in approval. “Let's go then.”

The warrior who spoke to Titus, leads them downstairs, another five warriors fall into step with them. They leave the guard house and head to the tower. As they approach the central market place in front of the tower, three wild horses without riders come their way. They run obviously scared past them. 

Close behind them sprint the stable master and two of his stable boys, desperately trying to catch them. One of the warriors stops the stable master.  
“Explain,” she says harshly.  
“Someone freed the Commander's horses and set a fire in the stable.”  
Titus frowns and steps forward. “Is there fire within the tower, too?”  
The stable master shakes his head. “No, there isn't. There was only fire in the stable house. But it's contained. The tower sentries were nearby and helped us.”  
“Fine. Then go and catch them!” Titus says and gestures in the direction the horses have run.  
“Of course, Flamekeeper,” the stable master replies and hurries away.

Titus, Pretoria and the warriors cross the market place and arrive at the tower's main entrance.  
Titus glances to the temple, which is located on the left of the tower. It looks dark and deserted.

The tower's main entrance is blocked. No tower sentry standing guard at the entrance.  
One of Nebra's warriors takes his battle-ax and hit it several times against the wooden doors of the tower.  
“Tower guard!” he shouts, “open the tower! Now!”  
The entrance remains closed and Titus huffs slightly.  
Pretoria turns to the Flamekeeper. “What does this mean?”  
“I don't know yet,” Titus admits. He takes a few steps back and looks up along the tower. He spots the burning red flame on the top of the tower. His gaze remains a moment at the flame before it trails down to the lower floors of the tower.

Suddenly there are shadows moving behind the windows of the second floor.

One sentry opens one window and looks down at them. He's wearing the typical light armor of the tower guard and holding a spear in his right hand.  
“Who demands entrance?” he shouts.  
“The Flamekeeper is back!” the warrior next to Titus shouts back. “Open the entrance for him and Pretoria!”.  
“The Flamekeeper returned?” the sentry asks suspiciously. “Prove it!”  
Titus takes some more steps back so he can face the sentry.  
“Ronn, it's me, Titus! Open the door for us! And inform the others!”  
“Flamekeeper!” The sentry says and bent over a little bit to recognize Titus between the warriors.  
“I can't make you out in the dark. To be sure it's really you, tell me the sacred password!”

The warriors around Titus looks confused for a moment. Titus inhales deeply and shouts the password to the sentry, “ _Leti mille repente viae_ ”!  
The sentry nods, turns and shouts commands to other sentries behind him.  
A moment later, the ground floor is illuminated and a lot of sentries gather behind the main entrance. The doors are opened from the inside and Ronn leave the tower and walks over to Titus.

“Flamekeeper! Finally!” he says and bows his head to Titus. “Who's with you?”  
“I picked up Pretoria at the guard house,” Titus explains and then motions to the warriors around them. “These warriors are loyal to the flame.”  
Ronn straightens. “The Flamekeeper and the Nightblood are allowed to enter the tower,” he announces. “Nevertheless, the tower remains shut until a new Commander is chosen.”

Titus turns to Nebra's warriors. “Inform Nebras. And make sure some of you stay close to the tower in case there are further information for Nebras.”  
“Sha, Flamekeeper, “ the warrior with the battle-ax says and steps back to let the three go to the tower.

Ronn leads Titus and Pretoria inside. After they enter the tower, the sentries close the doors behind them and block the entrance once again.

 

**** 

 

Gustus and his companions approach the hallway which leads to the cells. Only at the walls of the hallway are burning torches. The small cells are pitch dark. Indra takes a torch from the torch holder in the wall and shines the light into the first cell.

“Empty,” she says clipped.

They check another four cells without finding any prisoner. Suddenly, they hear footsteps echoing through the dungeons. Indra sets the torch hastily back into one of the torch holders and pulls Gustus and Quint into an unlocked cell. They presses themselves against the rear wall and wait.

Two warriors come along.  
“Can't stand it that the _natrona_ is still alive,” the woman snarls.  
“Neither can I,” her companion agrees with her. Both are heavy armed. Their armor give them away as the tower guards. “Why is he still under the protection of the General of the tower guard after all he has done? Even the Flamekeeper would have killed him immediately.”

Both come to a halt.

“Probably the General is a _natrona_ , too,” the woman assumes. “Surely he's involved somehow...”  
“I bet,” the man says. “So let's get rid of the mad Nightblood once and for all.”  
The woman nods and they stride away.

Gustus and his companions tense at those words.

“They are going to kill the Nightblood,” Indra whispers.  
“We won't let that happen. Move!” Gustus commands and the three of them exit their hiding place and run after the two assassins.

Gustus leads them. The hallway veers to the right. Gustus stops as they almost have caught up with them. They are ten yards away from the assassins and watch them standing in front of a cell. The woman is holding a bunch of keys and a torch whereas the other sentry draws his sword.

“Blood must have blood,” the woman calls. She tries to put one of the keys into the lock to open the cell when Gustus and Indra starts to attack them. The woman lets go of the bunch of keys and the torch and draws her sword as well. The male sentry turns to Gustus and gets into a defensive stance. He blocks Gustus' first blow successfully. The two sentries are standing next to each other and blocking to the way to the Nightblood. The sound of swords meeting echos through the dungeons.  
Indra starts to attack the other woman. 

Quint is right behind them but unable to reach their opponents. He looks around and spots the still burning torch. It has rolled right in front of the Nightblood's cell. Around the iron bars, which run from the bottom to the top of the door, are two hands. Quint narrows his eyes. The Nightblood is standing behind the bars and watches the fight, his face unreadable. As their gazes meet, Quint gestures with his head to the torch at the Nightblood's feet. The prisoner slowly picks the torch up, pulls it into his cell. He straightens and tightens the grip on the torch.

Gustus is hit by a sword at his right shoulder. He grits his teeth and keeps on fighting. But he can't attack anymore. Now, he has to go into the defensive stance. Quint steps nearer to Gustus to help them.

The Nightblood pushes his right arm with the torch in his hand through the bars and throws the burning torch at the male sentry a few feet away from him. The flame hits him at the neck and ignites his hood. The burning man cries out and throws himself to the ground. Desperately he rolls forth and back to put out the fire. 

He successfully extinguishes the fire, but Gustus takes advantage of the situation, steps forward, and thrusts his sword with both hands into the heart of his opponent. With a hiss, he pulls his sword out of the dead sentry and attacks the female sentry from the side. The woman looks in horror from Indra to Gustus and then Indra's sword tears her belly significantly. The sentry collapses and blood spills over the ground. Her eyes are wide open and the spews blood.

“ _Natrona!_ Indra growls at her, sheathes her sword and pulls her favorite dagger from the belt to cut her throat. With one fluid motion her fight is over.

“Take the bodies in one of the cells,” Gustus commands, holding his injured shoulder with his left arm. Indra and Quint grab the bodies by their arms and pull them into the next free cell. Quint goes up to the end of the corridor to get another torch and returns to Indra and Gustus.

The older warrior sheathes his sword with his left arm. He bents over and picks up the bunch of keys. Indra takes the torch from Quint and shines the light at the Nightblood, who's still standing behind the iron bars.

“So you're the one who killed the Commander and the Nightbloods?” she snarls at him.  
Trenton holds her gaze and doesn't back away from her.  
“So they say,” he replies.

 

 _gona_ : warrior, the expression “gona” is used for trained warriors after passing the initiation ritual  
_natrona_ : traitor  
_shof op!_ :Shut up!  
_Leti mille repente viae_ : a thousand roads to sudden death

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tell me what you think!
> 
> Will update the story in February.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ***Trigger Warning***
> 
> This chapter contains a scene which could cause memories of Ep. 307.

Titus is back in the tower. His eyes scan the crowd of sentries around Pretoria and him.  
Ronn, one of the sentries, turns to him.  
“The General of the tower guard awaits you in the small meeting room on the second floor, Flamekeeper.”  
Titus nods. “Let's not waste any more time,” he says and begins to walk to the stairs.  
“You'll come with me,” he commands to Pretoria, who shifts nervously with her feet. “I won't let you out of my sight,” he grumbles more to himself than to the girl.

Four sentries fall into step with them and they go upstairs. After they arrive at the second floor they hurry along a broad hallway and stop in front of a door guarded by two sentries. Both slightly bow their heads and open the door for Titus and Pretoria without a word spoken. The two enter the small meeting room, while the four sentries who accompanied them are waiting outside.

A man dressed in the typical light armor of the tower guard walks up to them. He's alone.  
“Flamekeeper!” he says and comes to a halt only a yard away from Titus.  
“General of the tower guard!” Titus greets the warrior. “What happened to our Commander?” he asks and gestures to Pretoria to sit down on one of the chairs.

“He was killed by Trenton in the throne room.”  
“They were alone?”  
“Yes, they were. Trenton wanted to speak with the Commander in private. Heda agreed. He didn't carry any visible weapons with him and since he's a Nightblood, we let him pass.”

Titus frowns. “How did he die?”  
“As far as I can say, he was killed by a sword.”  
“By his own sword?”  
“No, he died with his sword in his hand. It looked like there had been a sword fight.” The General pauses for a moment. “As the sentries entered the throne room, Trenton was sitting on the wooden throne. A bloodstained sword was lying on the dais.”

“So there are no doubts that it was him who killed the Commander,” Titus says, his voice filled with anger. “Did he say anything?”  
“According to my sentries he just stood up and said that he was the last Nightblood now and he would be the next Commander.”  
“Nothing more?”  
“No, since then he hasn't said one more word.”  
“Where is he now?” Titus demands to know and glances to Pretoria. The Nightblood is staring at the ground.  
“In the dungeons,” the General replies.  
“I'll deal with him later.” Titus straightens. “Where's the body of the dead Commander?”  
“Still in the throne room.”  
“Did anybody touch the dead body?”  
“No, Flamekeeper, we knew you weren't in Polis so we sent for your apprentice -”  
“And?” Titus interrupts him harshly.  
“We found him dead in the temple. He was stabbed in the back.”

Titus begins to walk up and down the room and tries to summarize what happened.  
“So Trenton killed first Joss in the temple, returned to the tower, killed the other Nightbloods and then he went to the throne room to take out the Commander? He must have been soaked with blood.”  
“He wasn't. The sentries in front of the throne room would have noticed that.”

Titus stops walking and looks to the General. “There's something off with the whole story. And I'll find out what. But first, I have to see the dead Commander. Flamekeeper duties.”

The three of them leave the small meeting room and make their way to the elevator. The throne room is located in the highest floor of the tower. They step into the elevator, joined by two sentries.

“Up to the Commander's floor!” the General shouts. Slowly, the elevator starts moving.  
“Any word from the missing Flamescouts?” Titus asks while the elevator is pulled slowly to the top of the tower. The General shakes his head. Titus lips form a thin line and he doesn't say anything more until they arrive at the Commander's floor.

Titus hurries to the throne room. Several sentries are standing guard in front of the doors. They straighten as they see Titus and let him pass. The Flamekeeper enters the throne room, followed by Pretoria. The child is pale and doesn't say anything. Titus lights more candles and finds the dead Commander lying in front of the dais. Pretoria walks timidly to the dead Commander on the ground and stares at his dead body. Titus catches up with her stops right next to her. For a moment, both are standing there in silence. Titus clasps his hands in front of his chest.  
“ _Yu gonplei ste odon, Marten kom Trikru…_ “ Titus mutters. “ _Gonplei kom Heda kigon feva._ ” 

Titus looks to Pretoria.“Sit down over there,” he demands and points to the chairs at the other end of the throne room. “You are allowed to watch but don't dare to interrupt me.”

Pretoria does as she was told and takes a seat.

Titus kneels down to the dead body and presses with his right hand on the wound at the belly. Black blood runs slowly over his fingertips. He raises his arm and draws a black line with the blood on his forehead. He mumbles something and rolls the body over on its belly.

From an inside pocket of his cloak he pulls out a small red leather bundle. He unwraps it and looks at his surgical kit and the tiny rusty box for the flame. He takes an old scalpel from the kit and brushes away the long braided hair of the dead Commander to have access to the back of his neck.

He makes a cut into the neck and exposures the flame. Titus whispers the password and the flame pulls in its tentacles and turns into a chip. He removes it from the neck and lays it carefully into the tiny box. Then he packs the things back into the kit and puts the bundle back into his cloak.

Titus exhales audible and looks over to Pretoria.  
“It's done. We can leave.”

He strides to the doors and calls the sentries. The Nightblood follows him. The doors are opened immediately and Titus demands to lay the dead Commander out. The sentries hurry into the throne room to fulfill his orders.

The General of the tower guard approaches Titus. “Did everything go well?”  
Titus nods, exhausted.

They walk back to the elevator as a sentry runs along the corridor toward them.  
“Flamekeeper! General of the tower guard!” he pants. “We have found one of General Reewa's warriors on the roof of the temple, dead. And two of our sentries are missing!”  
“To the dungeons, now!” Titus demands.

They take the elevator to the ground floor. As they arrive there, the General hurries to his sentries.  
“Everyone down to the to dungeons!” he commands. “Bring Trenton to me. And capture everyone else who might be down there as well.”

“Don't kill the invaders!” Titus shouts. “We need them alive.”  
“Sha, Flamekeeper,” the sentries say and run away to collect as many sentries as possible to go to the dungeons. Within minutes, twenty armed sentries are ready and run downstairs to the dungeons.

Titus, Pretoria and the General remain near the main entrance, together with two guards. After a while they hear voices. Ronn returns from the dungeons, a fourteen-year old boy next to him. The prisoner has his hands tied behind his back.

“Here he is, Flamekeeper,” Ronn says and drags the boy in Titus' direction. “Save and sound.” The boy has long smooth hair which is pitch dark and braided. Several dark red dyed strands in his braided hair gives him away as a Plain Rider warrior.

Pretoria tenses at the sight of Trenton and hides behind Titus' back so she doesn't have to face him.  
Titus looks at Trenton for a moment and then back to Ronn.  
“Any invaders?”  
“We captured two warriors and a boy.”

Before Titus can ask for any details, more sentries come back to the ground floor, together with three prisoners. Titus eyes widen as he spots Indra and Gustus among them.

“Take the prisoners and the Nightbloods to the small meeting room,” he commands to the sentries. Then he turns to the General. “We need to find out what happened.”  
“I agree,” the General replies in a firm voice and joins them on their way back to the meeting room.

They enter the meeting room and gather around a wooden war table. Titus is standing next to Pretoria, to Titus' left there are Indra, Gustus and Quint, the three of them tied. Trenton is standing across from the Flamekeeper. To Titus' right there is the General, flanked by two of his sentries.

The General glares at the three invaders, but it is Titus who speaks first.  
“The situation is grave. The Commander's dead. Much is at stake. I need to know what happened. Quick!” He looks at Trenton who holds his gaze but doesn't respond. Both stare at one another, Titus' face hard, Trenton's unreadable.

The General plays nervously with the hilt of his sword until he can't stand the silence anymore.  
“I should have killed you the moment General Reewa called the sentries and told them you were going to kill the Commander!” His anger fills the room. “It's only because of your black blood that you're still alive, boy!” he yells at the Nightblood.

Titus turns to the right to face the General.

“Reewa was in the tower when the Commander was killed?”  
“Sha. She found the dead Nightbloods and alerted the sentries. She was covered in blood.”  
Titus frowns. “How come she was at the Nightblood's floor in the first place? She didn't mention that.”  
“I didn't speak to her in person,” the General admits. “According to my sentries, she told them that she had been looking for her niece, Pretoria.”

Titus hums. 

“We couldn't question her any further,“ the General explains, “she disappeared right before the tower was shut.”

Titus' gaze wanders back to Trenton.

“So you killed the Commander?”  
The boy straightens. “I defeated him in a fight to the death. He was weak, I had to do it.”  
“So that's why you took out the other Nightbloods? “Titus growls. “You even killed Elsa, the girl who looked after the junior Nightbloods.”

Quint's face turns ashen and his eyes widen in horror at the mention of Elsa.

“For the death of my apprentice alone you would deserve the death of thousand cuts. Luckily for you, you're the last living Nightblood here,” he gestures at Pretoria, “except of this junior Nightblood next to me.”

The General inhales deeply to voice his anger but Indra is faster.

“He gets away unpunished, Flamekeeper?” she asks harshly.

“I can't punish him for killing the Commander,” Titus explains. “Even if he would have, what we don't know for sure. As soon as a Nightblood is a _gona_ , he or she can challenge the Commander in combat in a fight to the death. These are our rules.”

Indra huffs. “He's not even Trikru.”  
“The rules of the flame apply for every Nightblood, no matter which clan they are coming from,” Titus explains calmly.

Titus changes the topic and turns to Gustus and Indra.  
“What the hell did you do in the dungeons?”  
“Flamekeeper,” Gustus starts, “we were trying to get information about the situation within the tower.”

“You weren't told to do so,“ Titus grumbles.  
The General gives the Flamekeeper a questioning look.  
“These two warriors belong to me. They were my scouts and brought me from TonDC to Polis.”

“And the boy?” the General asks.  
“I belong to General Reewa's army,” Quint says. “I was sent on patrol through Polis, together with my first.”  
Indra looks to the boy next to her. “You were his second?”  
Quint nods and looks to the General of the tower guard. “He was a traitor, anyway. He deserves to die.”

“Enough!” Titus says. “I need to speak with Trenton in private. Untie my scouts,” he addresses the sentries and gestures to Gustus and Indra. 

One of the sentries walks over to Gustus and Indra immediately and cuts the ropes around their wrists with a sharp knife.

“Everyone but Trenton leave now,” Titus commands. “Gustus and Indra, look after the junior Nightblood!”  
Indra and Gustus nods and leave with Pretoria.

“What about the boy?” The General asks.  
“Get him out of my sight,” Titus answers.

“To the dungeons, then, boy,” the General says to Quint harshly.  
The sentries take Quint and drag him outside, they exit together with the General, leaving Titus and Trenton alone.

The door shuts close loudly and Titus looks to Trenton who is still standing across from him, at the other side of the table, his hands tied.

“I know it wasn't you. You didn't kill Joss. You didn't kill the Nightbloods. And for sure, you didn't kill the Commander, either.”  
“There is no proof of that, “ Trenton replies, challenging.  
“I hadn't known you for long before I went on my secret mission but I am sure it wasn't you.” The Flamekeeper sights slightly. “Your people are well known for their pride, Trenton. You might fool the sentries or the General but not me.” 

Titus crosses his arms over his chest. “Speak,” he demands.

“I spoke to General Reewa for several times. She told me that I could challenge the Commander any time and if I killed him I would become Commander without a taking part at the conclave. She hid the second sword in the throne room.”

Titus narrows his eyes as Trenton continues.

“She was present when I came to challenge the Commander. First, the Commander doesn't believe me but then Reewa throw me the sword and we had a sword fight.”

“What happened then?”

“I lost.”

“You lost? Heda let you live?”

“He was laughing at me and was about to sheath his sword when Reewa jumped between us, took my sword and killed the Commander herself.”

Titus frowns. “How did she escape?”

“Through the side entrance of the throne room.”

“And the guards let her pass?”

Trenton shrugs. “Seems that way.” And he adds quietly, “I didn't know she was up to kill the other Nightbloods. I was trapped. I couldn't leave the throne room unseen so I stayed.”

Titus drops himself onto a chair and rubs his chin. “And you couldn't alert the sentries because it looked as if you had killed the Commander.”

Trenton nods. “They don't trust me because I'm not Trikru.”

“And because of your damn pride you didn't want anyone to know that Reewa did what you weren't capable of.”

They stare at each other for another moment before Trenton confirms Titus' conclusion with a short nod.

“When I was told that all the other Nightbloods were dead, I knew it was a trap. Reewa needed me to get rid of the Commander.”

“So you didn't sit on the throne and said you were the last Nightblood?”

“No, I didn't. When I left for the throne room, the other Nightbloods were still alive.”

Titus looks down for a moment and thinks about the things Trenton has told him.

“That means at least one of the sentries -” Titus starts to say.

“...is a traitor,” Trenton completes his sentence. “Yes.”

“Do you think the General of the tower guard was involved in Reewa's plan?”

“Don't think so. He protected me and took me in the dungeons. He could have killed me easily if he had wanted to.”

Titus stands up slowly and walks around the table and unties Trenton with a single cut of his dagger.  
The Nightblood rubs his fingers over his hurting wrists.

“Let's go now. You need to eat and rest and so do I. There might be a conclave before the ascension.”

“Conclave? With whom?” Trenton asks, obviously confused.

“Pretoria might challenge you.”

“But she's only a junior Nightblood.”

“She is. Nevertheless she has the right to volunteer for the conclave. Which she will probably do since it's the only way to save the life of her aunt.” Titus voice turns into a whisper. “Don't tell anyone else that there's a traitor among the sentries. I'll deal with this problem myself in due course.”

Both exit the meeting room and face the others who have been waiting outside. Pretoria is standing between Gustus and Indra, her head low.

“Where's the boy?” Titus asks.

“They brought Quint into the dungeons, Flamekeeper,” Gustus reports.

“The next Commander will decide his fate,” the General says.

Titus nods in approval. 

“If Pretoria volunteers there will be a conclave tomorrow at dawn. Let's rest until then,” Titus says and turns to one of the sentries. “We are going to spend the rest of the night in one of the guest rooms in the third floor. I'll share the room with the two Nightbloods and my scouts from TonDC. Bring blankets and food to us. Also, send a healer for Gustus.” Then he turns to the General.

“Have every sentry ready. I need ten guards in front of the door and some additional guards at every end of the hallway.”

The General nods and hurries away with one of his sentries.

“It's late. We should go to our room and rest. Or would you like to visit the laid out Commander in the throne room?”

Both Nightbloods shake their heads and follow Titus to their room for this night, Gustus and Indra right behind them. 

 

_gona_ : warrior, the expression “gona” is used for trained warriors after passing the initiation ritual  
 _Yu gonplei ste odon, Marten kom Trikru…Gonplei kom Heda kigon feva._ : Your fight is over, Marten kom Trikru… The Commander’s fight goes on.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please tell me what you think! And sorry for the many typos in chapter 8. Hope I've fixed them all. And of course, it's the “Plain Riders clan” and not “Plain Raiders clan” ;-)
> 
> And don't worry, Lexa and Altoona will be back soon.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry that it took me so long for this update!

A soft knock at the door. Altoona opens her eyes and sits up in her bed immediately. She blinks for several times, tries to adjust her eyes to the darkness around her.

With her left hand she checks whether the little Nightblood is still lying next to her. Within seconds she finds Lexa curled up in her blanket, sleeping. With her right hand, Altoona takes her dagger, which she has put under her pillow. Carefully, she listens for any noises. First, all she can make out is Bronn, who is slightly snoring. Then, she hears it again. A soft knock at the door, this time a little bit firmer. She sights and gets up. She sneaks to the door.

“Who's there?” she asks harshly.  
“It's me, Barya! A female voice whispers. “Let me in, it's urgent!”  
“Wait, I've to light a candle...” Altoona answers.  
“No, don't!” Barya hisses.  
Altoona unlocks her door and lets her in.  
“You're alone?” she asks the scout.  
“I think so, “ Barya replies and slips into the hut.  
“You can sit down on the bed, Bronn and Lexa are sleeping, “ Altoona says. She takes Barya by her right wrist and leads her safely to the bed, trying not to trip over Bronn.  
Both sit down.

“So what is it?” Altoona demands to know.  
“You have to leave!” Barya demands.“All of you.”  
“Why? What happened?”  
“People said the little girl here is a Nightblood. Altoona, you are in danger.”  
“How do people know about her? I didn't tell anyone...”  
“I don't know, but they will come for her. I overheard it. There's something going on. There are some of General Reewa's warriors among ours. I recognized them from my visits in Polis.

“That sounds suspicious,” Altoona admits.  
Barya nods. “You have to leave TonDC!”  
“Any chance we could get horses?”  
“No way. The stable is guarded properly. And the thing is, at the moment I can't say who we can trust.”  
“You're right.”  
“So where are you going to?”  
“Polis. At least near Polis.”

Altoona jumps to her feet, and wakes up Bronn to inform him that they are going to leave Ton DC right now.

Bronn grumbles something and rubs his eyes.

Barya sneaks out of the hut while Bronn and Altoona are hastily packing a few things for their trip back to Polis.

 

**** 

 

Meanwhile in Polis:  
The sun is far from rising yet but Titus is wide awake. He stands up from his makeshift bed and walks to the door. He puts his hand at the door handle and opens the door a little bit. Immediately, one of the sentries standing guard in front of their room looks at him.  
“Flamekeeper?” he just says.  
“How long until dawn?” Titus asks quietly.  
“A little more than two candle marks.”  
Titus nods. “Then it is time for me to prepare for the conclave. Send one sentry down to the temple. I need my Flamekeeper robe. And bring me a sharp blade.”  
The sentry looks confused.  
“I haven't shaved in days,” Titus clarifies and slides his right hand over his stubble.  
“Sha,” the sentry replies and hurries away.

Titus shuts the door and looks at his companions. Indra and Gustus, who has his right arm in a sling, are still sleeping on furs on the ground. He glances to Pretoria. The five-year old had a hard time to drift into sleep. She didn't say anything since they had entered the room. The Nightblood is lying uncomfortable on a sofa. Titus' gaze wanders to the only bed where Trenton is lying. The boy is awake, lying on his side and has himself propped up on his elbow. Their looks meet each other.  
Titus understands the silent question. 

“Soon,“ he whispers to the Nightblood. Titus takes a chair and sits down next to Trenton.  
“Are you afraid?”  
The Nightblood shakes his head. “Plain Riders warriors are never afraid.”  
“True,” Titus admits. “But this situation is different. There weren't that many Plain Riders warriors before who got the chance to become Commander.” He pauses for a moment. “I can only remember one single Nightblood from the Plain Riders at all. It died at the conclave when I was only an apprentice of the order of the flame.”  
“Then he wasn't worth to be Commander,“ the Nightblood says coolly.  
“The spirits of the last Commanders always chose wisely,” Titus replies more to himself than to Trenton.  
“Have they ever failed?”  
“They haven't. Although I have to admit they can only choose between the Nightbloods who are available at a conclave.”  
“Well there isn't a wide selection to pick from this time.” Trenton glances to Pretoria and then back to Titus.

The Flamekeeper remains silent for a moment.

“Will she really volunteer for the conclave?”  
“That's not my decision to take.”  
“Wouldn't it be better to kill her right here...-”  
“Absolutely not,” Titus interrupts him strongly. Then his voice goes lower again. “I wish you had been brought to Polis earlier.”  
Trenton narrows his eyes.  
“Would Trikru follow a Commander from the Plain Riders clan?”  
“I'd like to say that it doesn't matter which clan a Commander came from as soon as he or she is Commander. But I'm not gonna lie. There people who wouldn't appreciate a Commander who isn't from Trikru.”  
“So why didn't you kill me the day I was brought to Polis?”  
“You have the sacred blood. The order of the flame has to protect every Nightblood child, regardless of their origin.”

 

Pretoria shuts her eyes open and glares dagger at her competitor.

Titus notices Trenton's starring behind him so he turns and finds the little Nightblood wide awake, too.  
She sits up and huffs slightly in Trenton's direction.

A firm knock at the door interrupts their conversation. Titus strides to the door. He opens it quietly and looks at the sentry. The tall guard is bearing Titus robe and little leather pouch.

“I've collected the things you requiered,” he says and gives the robe and the pouch to Titus. The Flamekeeper nods and darts to Indra. “Wake up!”

Indra jumps to her feet and straightens at the sight of the Flamekeeper. Gustus wakes up as well.  
“I'll go to the other room and prepare for the conclave. Watch the Nightbloods!”  
“Sha, Flamekeeper,” she replies and darts to Trenton's bed and stands guard between him and Pretoria.

Titus walks to the other room what used to be the bathroom. 

Indra looks fiercely between the two Nightbloods. None of them dare to say a word.

Titus comes back, his head and face shaved. He's changed into his typical brown Flamekeeper robe again.

He walks over to Pretoria. “Come with me.”

Trenton frowns as Pretoria stands up and follows Titus into the other room. He sits up and puts his feet on the ground.  
“What does that mean?” he asks Indra.  
“shhhh.”  
Trenton's expressions harden but he keeps quiet.

It doesn't take long until Titus and Pretoria return.

“It's time,” Titus says to his companions and the Nightbloods. Everyone knows that this is the command to stand up and follow him. Titus leads them out of the room, the two Nightbloods right behind him. Several sentries fall into their step as they stride along the corridor.

They enter the elevator. To the Nightbloods' surprise, Titus commands to pull them up to the Commander's floor. “You have to honor the dead Commander,” he explains. The two Nightbloods follow him without arguing. They step into the throne room, Indra and Gustus behind them. 

The throne room is brightly lit with lots of candles. In the middle of the room, in front of the dais, is a table on which they have put the dead commander. His body is wrapped in white blankets and it is lying on a red blanket.

Titus walks over to the table with the dead body and stops in front of it. He motions Trenton and Pretoria to follow him. Both walk up to him and Titus stands between them. Together they remain silent for a while and look at the dead body.

Then he turns to exit the throne room. As they are in the elevator again, Titus speaks to Trenton.  
“It's important to honor the dead commander. Now you're ready. I honored him with Pretoria before but it's the tradition that every Nightblood does this.”

Trenton just nods.

They arrive at the ground floor. A sentry walks up to them as the leave the elevator.  
“Is everything prepared?” Titus asks.  
“Sha, Flamekeeper.”  
“Where's the General of the tower guard?  
“He's waiting outside.”  
“Dawn is coming?”  
“At any moment.”  
“Let's go then,” Titus commands and leads the Nightbloods outside, followed by a crowd of sentries, Indra and Gustus. 

They leave the tower through the main entrance and make their way to a wooden stage which is located right in front of the tower. Many people of Polis have come. A big crowd is waiting in front of the stage. Most of them warriors but also elder people and children among them.  
Titus walks upstairs upon the stage. The General of the tower guard and Nebras, who is in command of the army of Polis, are waiting for him and the Nightbloods.

Titus frowns as he makes out General Reewa standing next to Nebras, her hands tied to her back.

Everyone is looking east. As the first ray of sun shine makes it way over the forest in the east of Polis, Titus makes two steps forward and begins to speak loudly.

“People of Polis! We lost our beloved Commander, Marten kom Trikru. Now, it is time to pass the flame to a Nightblood.” The crowd is silent.

Titus gestures at the boy next to him. “This is Trenton of the Plain Riders clan. Last living Nightblood except for this junior Nightblood, Pretoria kom Trikru.” He gestures to the Nightblood girl.  
“Pretoria, you are still a junior Nightblood, but you can volunteer.” He pauses for a moment. “What is your decision?”  
Reewa glares at niece but remains silent.  
Pretoria steps forward. “My time will come,” she shouts. “But not today. I will not volunteer.”

A whispering goes through the onlookers. Trenton tilts his head to face Pretoria. But her face is unreadable.

“Coward!” Reewa yells at her. “You're not worth my brother's blood!”

Titus motions the guards to take care of Reewa and turns to the crowd again. Pretoria turns and walks back to Gustus and Indra.

“So be it”, Titus calls. “Trenton is therefore the last Nightblood and will be given the flame.”

“No!”, “He's a traitor!”, “He murdered the former Commander!” More and more people shout angrily at Titus and Trenton. The crowd moves forward and blocks the way from the stage back to the tower. Titus glances to the General of the tower guard and to Nebras. Both shouts commands to their warrior but the crowd is stronger. Reewa smirks.

Titus steps forward again and raises both his arms. The Flamekeeper has no power over the crowd but they stop yelling and listen to him.

“People of Polis!” Titus begins. “This Nightblood,” he points to Trenton, “did not kill our Commander. Neither did he kill the other Nightbloods.” Titus inhales deeply and than shouts strongly, “it was her. General Reewa!”

General Reewa, who is still on the stage, flanked by two of Nebras' loyal warriors, tenses. “Liar!” she spats at Titus. Then she yells to the people, “it was him, the mad Nightblood from the Plain Riders clan!”

It doesn't take long until people within the crowd start fighting each other. Reewa's warriors against Nebras'. Neighbor against neighbor. 

“Protect the Nightbloods, “ Titus commands to the sentries on the stage. Several sentries approach Trenton and Pretoria and encircle them. 

Titus hurries to Nebras and the General of the tower guard. “We need to get the Nightbloods inside. As soon as possible!”

“The crowd won't let them pass, Flamekeeper,” Nebras says.  
“Then we have to force them to.” Titus replies.

They are interrupted by a signal horn that is blown three times.

“We are under attack!” Nebras shouts to Titus and the General of the tower guard.  
Reewa's smug grin widens.

The people of Polis are aware of what this signal means. The warriors run in the direction of the guard house. Elder people grab the children and run away to hide. Chaos breaks out.

People are leaving the market place and the amount of people who were blocking the way back to the tower is shrinking as well. Suddenly, Titus sees the chance to get back to the tower. 

He glances to the General of the tower guard, nods and shouts, “to the tower! Now!” Every sentry draws his sword or has his spear ready as they storm back to the tower, the Nightbloods and Titus in their middle. Gustus is with them. One sentry is shot by an arrow in his back. The warrior groans and collapses. Titus glances at the arrow. “Quick!” he shouts and they hurry the few yards back into the tower. There isn't much fighting anymore between the wooden stage and the main entrance of the tower. They arrive quickly at the tower. 

Nebras is running in the opposite direction, to the guard house, which is near the city gate. Indra hesitates for a moment before she decides to follow Nebras.

 

“Is everybody we need in the tower now?” the General of the tower guard demands to know.  
“Sha, the Flamekeeper and the Nightbloods are here!” one of the sentries shouts back.  
“Then shut the main entrance! Don't let anybody enter this tower,” he commands.

Titus grabs Trenton's arm. “To the throne room, now!” he commands and hurries with him to the elevator. Four sentries, Gustus and Pretoria follow them.  
They step into the elevator and after the doors are closed. Slowly, the elevator is pulled up to the commander's floor.

“Who dare to attack trikru like this?” Gustus asks.  
“I don't now yet,“ Titus answers. “But what I do know is that we need a Commander right now.” He looks to Trenton who holds his gaze like the evening before.  
The elevator stops and they exits and hurry along the hallway to the throne room.

“Everything is prepared, Flamekeeper!” one sentry who's standing guard in front of the throne room says to Titus.  
The Flamekeeper is about to just rushed into the throne room, as he stops and motions to two sentries to step forward.  
“You! Go and search the throne room!” The two men run into the throne room while Titus and the others are waiting outside. Titus walks up to Pretoria. “You'll wait here with the sentries. I'll inform you as soon as Trenton is Commander. Pretoria nods and then, as Titus turns his back to her, she glares dagger at Trenton, her arms crossed over her chest.

The two sentries returns. “All clear, Flamekeeper.”  
Titus nods and leads Trenton into the throne room. The sentries shut the doors behind them.  
Gustus waits outside the throne room and shuffles nervously with his feet.

After a while, Gustus approach one of the sentries.  
“Why does it take so long?” he asks.  
The sentry shrugs. “It takes how long it takes.”  
The General of the tower guard joins them.  
The sentries look at him and straighten.  
“No news,” he announces with a calm voice. “The tower is completely shut.”

Then, they hear Titus. “Open the doors, sentries!”  
The two sentries, who are flanking both sides of the doors, open the doors simultaneously. 

The General is the first who enters the throne room. Slowly, he walks along the red carpet which leads him to the dais. Titus is standing to the left of the wooden throne, his hands clasped behind his back. The General stares to Trenton. He's sitting on the wooden throne. He's wearing black cloth and a gray shoulder guard. The General glances to Titus, who slightly nods. 

“Trenton from the Plain Riders clan,” Titus says firmly. “Prove that you are our Commander. Prove that you are the legitimate heir of Becca Pramheda. Tell us the names of all former Commanders.

Trenton stands up from the throne and tells them about every Commander from the very beginning until now.  
The General of the tower guards nods satisfied and then kneels down and bows his head.  
“Heda.” He looks up to the Commander and Trenton gestures him to stand again.

“General of the tower guard. Send a sentry to change the burning light of the tower. Let everybody know that I'm in charge now.”

“Sha, Heda”, the General replies and turns to the door.

“Change the light on top of the tower!” he shouts to his sentries. Then he turns back and face the new Commander again.

“What are your commands?”

Trenton glances to Titus before he inhales deeply and begins to speak.

“Take back control over Polis. Find Nebras or whoever is in charge of the army now. Bring him here. I need a full report about what is going on. Capture Reewa. Kill everyone who dares to disobey.”

“Sha, Heda,” the General answers. He bows his head once again and hurries away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please tell me what you think about this chapter!


	11. Chapter 11

Altoona looks to the east. Dawn is coming. Bronn and she has been walking through the wood for hours. Altoona carries the little Nightblood, wrapped in her think blanket. They are slow without horses.  
“When will we arrive at Polis?” Bronn asks, trudging loudly through the muddy ground.  
“Shhhh,” Altoona hisses. “Watch your step. People can hear us ten miles away!”  
Bronn huffs slightly.  
They keep on walking for a while until Altoona answers his question.  
“Before sunset.”  
Bronn doesn't respond to her answer but comes to a halt and open his arms. Altoona understands his offer immediately and hands over the little Nightblood. Altoona shakes and stretches her sore arms as they walk on.  
Lexa open her eyes. Her head rests against Bronn's left shoulder and she can look behind them. She begins to stir.  
“She's awake,” Bronn whispers to his companion.  
“Lexa?” Altoona walks behind Bronn so the Nightblood can see her. “It's okay. We're here. We're going to Polis.”  
“Polis,” Lexa repeats slowly. Then it hits her. “Flamekeeper?”  
Bronn chuckles a bit. “She hasn't forgotten that part.”  
Altoona nods to Lexa. 

They walk on for a while until Altoona stops suddenly.  
“I can smell smoke.” Altoona whispers to Bronn. “There must be people. Wait here.”  
She crouches down and sneaks away through the bushes.

Lexa follows her with her eyes until she can't see her anymore. Bronn presses himself against a tree and looks around. 

They hear a grunt and something heavy hits the ground. Bronn doesn't dare to move.

“I have seen you,” a warrior shouts harshly. “Come over with your hands up!”

Bronn, who is still holding Lexa, hesitates for a moment. Then Lexa slaps with her right hand against his shoulder. Bronn shakes his head and holds her tighter. It takes him a second until he realizes what Lexa is up to. He frees her from the blanket and puts her to the ground. The little Nightblood crawls into a tiny hole under the tree, surrounded by gray stones and rotten ferns. Within seconds, she disappears together with her blanket. Bronn has his now free hand on the hilt of his swords and waits. Nothing happened. Sweat begins to gather on his face. With a sudden turn he jumps away from the tree to face his enemy. He twirls his sword and scans the wood. 

With every passing moment without finding the warrior he gets more and more nervous. He runs to another tree, trying to lead the warrior away from Lexa. He presses himself against a tree once again when all of a sudden a warrior jumps off the tree he is standing at. He tries to raise his arm to use his sword to fight off his enemy but the warrior is faster and punches him in the face. Bronn screams and falls onto the muddy ground.

The tall warrior huffs in annoyance and rummage through Bronn's leather pouch. His long red hair and his red beard are braided. He's wearing brown leather clothes. Around his neck he has a necklace of gray and blue stones.

He bents over Bronn, draws a dagger from his belt and mumbles something as something hits him and he falls slowly to the side. Bronn blinks, groans and sits up. He looks to the dead warrior next to him and then slowly looks up to the person standing a few yards away.

Altoona bents over the warrior and pulls her knife out of his back.  
“Stand up!” she commands to Bronn. “We need to leave. More warriors might come. Where's she?”

“She's hiding under a tree somewhere over there,” Bronn points to a tree with one hand and holds his nose with his other hand. Blood drips from his nose. “Hell. Or maybe there?” he points in the opposite direction.  
He begins to stumble through the wood. Altoona grabs his arm. “Stop.”

Altoona scans the trees nearby without finding Lexa.  
“Lexa!” she hisses quietly. “Come here!”  
“Damn it,” Bronn grumbles. “Titus will kill us if we leave her here.”

“Lexa?” Altoona asks again then there is a tug at her cloak. She turns around and there she's standing. The little Nightblood holds her gaze for a moment without saying anything.  
“I didn't see her coming,” Bronn says, astonished.

Lexa looks from Bronn to the dead warrior and back to Bronn and narrows her eyes for bit but remains silent.  
“I had everything under control,” he grumbles. Altoona suppresses a smile at Bronn.  
She takes the blanket from Lexa and gives it a shake. Then she picks her up . “However, we have to leave. These were two warriors from the Blue Cliff clan and whatever they're up to it's nothing good for sure.”

Bronn sheathes his sword, grabs his pouch and follows Altoona and Lexa on their way to Polis.

 

**** 

 

It's already afternoon as Altoona and Bronn get a first glance at Polis.  
Bronn nudges Altoona with his elbow. “Look!”  
The three of them, Lexa carried by Altoona, stare at the tower in the distance.  
“A new Commander has been chosen,” Altoona says to the little Nightblood. Lexa turns her head to face Altoona with a silent question.  
“It's the light on top of the tower,” Altoona explains. “It shines brightly like the sun, so there is a Commander in charge of Trikru. Otherwise there would be a red flame on the tower over there.”  
Lexa focuses on the tower again for a moment.  
“I like candles,” she says and a little smile tugs at her lips.

They walk on for another while when Bronn suddenly stops. He points to several dead bodies on the ground in the distance. Altoona and he share a silent look. Bronn draws his sword as they approach the bodies. Altoona tenses. She sets Lexa back on the ground and takes her by her left hand. With her free hand she pulls a dagger from her belt and scans the surroundings.  
Bronn kicks one body carefully with his foot against the shoulder. “Dead, “ he whispers to Altoona.  
He walks over to an abandoned wooden hand cart. He takes a look at the goods. “They were traders.”  
“Perhaps they were robbed by bandits?”  
“Don't think so.” He takes one of the bottles from the cart, opens it and sniffs at the dark liquid.  
“Good stuff,” he says with a smile. “Enough for a whole army to drink.”  
“So they weren't robbed.”  
“No, why wouldn't they leave behind all those bottles of alcohol?”  
“True.”  
Altoona approach one of the dead bodies and looks at the arrow that is pierced through his chest. She bents over and touches its fletching. “It's an arrow from Trikru.”  
“That doesn't make sense. Why would our people attack traders and leave their goods behind?”  
“Maybe they weren't after these goods.”  
“You have a point,” Bronn admits. Then he begins hastily to cover the dead bodies with all kind of branches he can find in the forest.  
“What are you up to? We need to go!” Altoona growls at him.

Bronn gestures to the wooden hand cart. “That's how we go to Polis! Get in!”  
Lexa looks between Altoona and Bronn, confused.  
“No way that we are taking this thing with us,” Altoona snarls. “Its reals make prints into the ground, even people from the Floukru clan would be able to track us!” She shakes her head in disbelief. “And right now we have more important things to take care of!”  
Altoona lets go of Lexa's hand for a moment and the little Nightblood disappears unseen among the bushes.  
“You got me wrong!” Bronn shouts and raises his right hand angrily.  
“No you are on the wrong mission!” Altoona replies and takes a few steps so both of the are standing in front of the cart. “this is not one of your tradings journeys, keep that in mind!”  
“I'm fully aware of that fact...”  
Altoona rolls her eyes. “Not convinced... Let's go now.” She is about to turn around as she faces Bronn again. “Next time you dare to disobey my orders you're dead!” she growls.  
Eventually she turns her back to Bronn and scans the wood. “Lexa?”

Bronn sets the bottle back into the cart and darts in the direction Lexa might have gone, Altoona on his heels.

Altoona lowers her speed as she sneaks through the bushes. Branches scratches over her hands and her face as she makes her way to the other side. Before she gets into the open, she stops and looks at the clearing. Lexa is kneeling, facing another child lying on the cold and muddy ground. Lexa shakes his body quite harshly with her right hand.

“Stand up! Stand up!”  
The boy groans and begins to stir.  
Bronn catches up with Altoona. “What are you waiting for?” he asks her. “Take her and let's go!”  
Altoona clenches her teeth and stares him down. She gestures him to wait while she's busy scanning the surroundings for any other warriors.  
Lexa is still talking to the boy. The five-year old's short dark hair is soaked in blood that is dripping down from a wound of his head.  
Lexa scans the area for any people but can't see anyone.  
“I'll get some help!” she assures him and runs to the directions the was coming from. As soon as she begins to crawl through the bushes, Altoona grabs her by her arm.  
“Lexa!” Altoona says sharply. “You can't just run off! The woods are dangerous!” Lexa holds her gaze and points to the injured boy. “He needs help!”  
Altoona sighs. “I'll take a look at him. You stay here with Bronn.” Altoona exits the bushes and walks up to the boy and comes to a halt just in front of him.  
She takes his hand and pulls at him so he can sit up.  
“What happened?”  
“Warriors attacked us. There were so many all of a sudden.”  
“What did you do?”  
“We were on our way home to Polis. Me, my father, my uncle and my brother.”  
Altoona looks down at him. “You're Trikru?”  
The boy nods. “My family? Are they...” his voice trails off.  
“Their fight is over,” Altoona replies quietly. “I'm sorry.”  
The boy lets his head drop.  
“Can you stand up?”  
Slowly, the boy propped himself up with his arms, gets on his knees and finally stands up.  
Altoona looks for any other injuries and nods, satisfied.  
“Can you walk?”  
“I think so.”  
“Then you can come with us. We're going to Polis, anyway.”  
“We?”  
“Just follow me.”

Avoiding the thorns in the bushes this time, she leads him around them and takes him for a 5-minutes-walk until they approach the wooden hand cart. A moment later, Bronn and Lexa emerge from the dense bushes and join them.  
The boy's eyes widen as he spots Lexa.  
“Is he going to Polis with us?” Lexa asks Altoona.  
“Sha. But we really need to go now.”  
Bronn inspects the wooden hand cart again. It contains four baskets, each one filled with a dozen bottles and two water canteens. Bronn rearranges the baskets and makes room in the front portion of the cart. He undoes his sword and hide it between the baskets. Then he motions to the two kids.  
“Get in,” he says to them. “We really should leave this place now.”  
“I'm still not convinced that this is a good choice,” Altoona says.  
“But we can't carry two kids. This way, both can sit and rest. Lexa is still weak.”  
Altoona contemplates his words.  
“Plus,” he continues, “we are now getting around as traders. I don't want to attract attention at the city gate. We don't know who's in charge now.”  
“I see,” Altoona admits and lays her sword in the cart as well. She picks up Lexa and sets her in the cart and helps the boy to get in. Then she wraps the thin blanket around them.  
“Whatever will happen, don't talk!” she says sharply.  
Bronn grabs with both hands the handles of the wooden hand cart and starts moving.  
“Same goes to you,” he says to Altoona who is walking next to him.  
“Sorry?”  
“Don't say anything if we meet someone. I'll do the talking.” He glances at Altoona. “Put on your hood. And don't look so fiercely.”  
Altoona turns his head to Bronn and glares daggers at him.  
“You overdo it.”  
“Nah, I'm trying to save us. Let them think we're weak, look afraid when people approaching us and walk with a limp.”  
“Why the hell am I thinking now you've done this before?” Altoona grumbles.  
“There are more survival skills than fighting techniques, especially when you're a trader...”

They walk for another while and Altoona looks every now and then at the kids. Lexa has fallen asleep soon whereas the boy is still awake.  
“You haven't told us you name boy.”  
The child looks at her, confused. “You haven't asked. And he,” he points to Bronn, “said we weren't allowed to talk at all.”  
“So what's your name then?”  
“Kalo kom Trikru,” he replies quietly.  
“I'm Altoona.” She gestures to her right, ”and this is Bronn. The girl next to you is Lexa.”  
“She's Nightblood, isn't she?” Kalo asks.

Bronn stops walking and turns around. He glances to Altoona, her face frozen for a moment.  
Bronn and Altoona glares at Kalo.  
“Did I say anything wrong?” he asks with a small voice. “It's just, she has some scratches on her right hand and it looks pretty dark...”  
Altoona makes a step to them and Kalo immediately backs away. She takes Lexa's hand and examines it. “Only shallow scratches. But she feels warm. I fear the fever is coming back.”  
“Then we should hurry,” Bronn says. “It will probably take us two candle marks to get to the city gate from here.”  
Altoona nods. “I'll push the cart from behind, so we can reach Polis before sunset.” She walks to the end of the wooden hand cart and does as she said.  
Bronn turns his head to Kalo while there are walking. “Don't mention her being a Nightblood. The moment you dare to say one word about it, you're dead.”  
The boy nods and wraps the blanket around himself a little tighter and stares to ground of the wooden hand cart.  
Altoona looks to the scared boy from behind.

“Do you have any family left in Polis, Kalo?”  
He raises his head, turns to her and makes a sad face.  
“I see,” Altoona says.  
“What are we doing with him in Polis?” Bronn asks.  
“That's for Titus to decide.”  
“Titus? The Flamekeeper?” Kalo says suddenly.  
“Sha,” Altoona and Bronn answer in unison.  
“Is it true that he has magical powers?”  
Altoona narrows her eyes a bit. “That's not a topic to discuss with a little boy.”  
Kalo is silent for a moment and places his right hand in his cloak pocket. He takes out a small iron tag. He puts it in his left hand and traces with his right index finger along the eternity symbol that is printed into the tag.  
“I want to be a Flamekeeper when I grow up.”  
“That's rare. How come?” Bronn asks. “The children of your age I know want to be warriors. All of them.” He stops pulling the cart, turns around and takes one of the water canteens to drink something. He closes the water canteen and lays it back into the cart as he spots the tag Kalo is playing with.  
“What's that? Show me!” Bronn demands and takes away the tag from Kalo. Altoona joins them, has a swig of water from the water canteen and looks suspiciously at the little tag Bronn is holding in his hands.  
“That's the tag of a flame scout!” Altoona says and crouches down so she can face Kalo.”Who gave you that?”  
The boy drops his head, closes his eyes and shakes his head wildly.  
“Did you find it?”  
Kalo raises his head slowly and Altoona looks at him, his eyes filled with tears.  
“It belonged to my uncle. He said it would be dangerous that people could identify him as a flame scout. He said there were warriors who wants them dead, the Nightbloods and the flame scouts. He gave that tag to me to hide it.”  
“I guess that explains why there are so many flame scouts are missing,” Bronn thinks aloud.  
“Well, some of them sent the last Commander into war, don't forget about that part, Bronn!” Altoona says and walks back to the end of the wooden cart to push it further.  
“However,” Bronn adds, “we should inform Titus about that as soon as possible.” 

With these words his hands grabs the handles of the wooden hand cart again and off they go.  
Bronn decides to take the main trail to Polis.  
Altoona looks around. “We are almost there.”  
“Yeah, finally,” Bronn grumbles. “I just hope they'll let us in without any questions.”  
“I hope so,” Altoona replies as she hears people speak. 

Within seconds, warriors emerge between the trees and from the bushes. More and more warriors come in their direction.  
“That's a whole army,” Altoona whispers to Bronn.  
The warriors are covered in blood, many are injured and walk with a limp. Several warriors on horses approach Altoona and Bronn and encircle them. The warriors hold spears in their hands and point them at Bronn.  
Kalo scoots closer to Lexa and presses his injured head against hers. The little Nightblood wakes up but Kalo hushes her immediately. Lexa blinks several times and lets her gaze wander over the warriors around them. She huffs at the sight of the warriors threatening Bronn. Kalo holds Lexa even closer. “Don't talk!” he hisses to her. “Don't talk!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tell me, what you think!
> 
> Timejump will come, I think after the next chapter :-)


	12. Chapter 12

Bronn looks at the army that has encircled them and quickly recognizes them as warriors from the Blue Cliff clan. They are wearing necklaces with gray and blue stones around their necks like the warrior who attacked Bronn earlier this day. Altoona still stands at the end of the wooden hand cart. She tries so look afraid, clings with her hands at the cart. She lowers her head and watch the warriors from the corners of her eyes.  
Among the generals on their horses Bronn spots a familiar face. Right next to a Blue-Cliff general appears a woman from behind. General Reewa.

“What are you doing here?” a Blue-Cliff general asks Bronn harshly.  
“We were just heading to Polis. To sell our goods on the market,” he lies.  
“That's a waste of time,” the general replies. “There won't be a market for quite some time.”  
“No?” Bronn asks with a fake innocent voice.  
“Polis is on fire. And oh, they have a new Commander” he almost spats the words.  
“Hopefully a red Commander?” Bronn asks.  
The Blue-Cliff warrior huffs in annoyance. “Nah, some boy from the Plain Riders.”  
“I'm sorry to hear that,” Bronn says and fakes a sad expression. “We hoped for the return of a red Commander.”  
The General nods in Agreement and lowers his spear as do the warriors around them.

Then, another warrior stops their conversation and steps forward. “They're just Trikru. Let's take them out!” he shouts angrily.  
“No,” Bronn pleads. “Please spare my wife and my children.”  
Altoona almost chokes at his words but remains calm.

“They are not worth our blades,” Reewa says loudly. “Take their goods and let them pass. But make sure they have no Nightbloods with them.”  
A warrior approach Lexa and Kalo. Both don't dare to move. The warrior looks at the blood on Kalo's and Lexa's heads and rolls his eyes slightly. “No Nightbloods,” he grunts and take a bottle from the cart.  
Reewa narrows her eyes at Bronn. “Take your family and get lost!”

Altoona walks with a fake limp around the cart, unwraps the blanket around the children and takes Lexa out of the cart. Bronn helps Kalo to get out of the cart as well. The warriors take the bottles from the baskets and make room for the four to walk off. They leave to main trail to Polis to keep as much distance between them and the army as possible.  
“Walk with a limp as long as they can see you,” Bronn hisses to Altoona.  
“But our swords. They'll find them.”  
“Don't turn around and look at them. They may find our swords but believe me when I say, they're done fighting for today. They will want to have a drink instead.”

In the distance they can her the Blue-Cliff general yelling orders at his warrior.  
“Now it's not the time to rest. Stand up and let's march back to Waterdaun before more Trikru warriors show up!”

After half an hour they approach the city wall of Polis. The wall is made of many stones from the old wall, too tall to climb over it.

“The city gate is in the west,” Kalo says and points with his left arm in that direction. His head and face are still covered with blood but the wound has stopped bleeding.  
“We know.” Bronn replies calmly. “We're walking along the wall to the city gate. Watch out for any warriors,” he added, “they might come back.”  
“Isn't that too risky?” Altoona asks him skeptically.  
“It is. But staying outside of Polis isn't an option for us.”  
“We don't know exactly who's in charge now at the city gate,” Altoona says worried. “Hopefully, the won't just start attacking us when we get there. We're unarmed and have two kids with us!”  
“Let me do the talking again, Altoona.”  
Altoona huffs, and looks at Lexa, who is carried by her. “We better hurry. She needs to see a healer soon.”  
Bronn nods and turns to Kalo, who is trudging weakly behind him.  
“Don't talk when we get there. We have to be careful.” Kalo looks up for a moment, his face without expression. Bronn narrows his eyes a bit until Kalo makes a small nod and lets his head drop again.

It doesn't take long until they are spotted by the warriors in the guard tower next to the city gate.  
Bronn glances above. “Trikru!” he hisses to Altoona. Slowly they approach the gate and Bronn raises both his arms. Kalo is right behind him together with Altoona and Lexa.

Several warriors approach them and hold their swords to Bronn's and Altoona's throats.  
“Who are you?” They ask harshly. “Speak quickly!”  
“Bronn kom Trikru,” Bronn begins to introduce them, “Altoona kom Trikru, Kalo kom Trikru and,” he pauses for a second, “Alexandria kom Trikru.”  
Altoona closes her eyes as he referred to the Nightblood as Alexandria.

The warrior contemplates Bronn's names and tilts his head to the warrior next to him. “Never heard any of these names. Have you?”  
“Neither have I,” his companion stats. “Could be spies.”  
“Sha. No entrance for you!”

“Please let me and my family pass,” Bronn pleads.  
“No stranger is to enter Polis. It's the order of the Commander!”

“Let them pass, warriors. They belong to me,” a strong voice shouts from the guard tower. Bronn and Altoona looks up and see Indra among the other warriors. The warriors draw back their swords and make room for them to enter Polis. The door is opened slowly from the inside and Indra walks up to them. 

She glared a short moment at Bronn and huffs in annoyance. Then her gaze wanders to Altoona and the kids. “I didn't expect you to come her with your 'family'”  
Altoona keeps their expression blank while they are walking together through the gate.

She looks around to check on the damage of the city. There isn't open fire anymore but still smoke is rising from several buildings.

“How bad is it?” Altoona demands to know and looks at the dead warriors lying on the market place.  
“We were attacked by the Blue-Cliff clan. Some made it over the wall and set fires. It didn't take us long to kick their asses and take back control of the city.”  
Altoona looks at her friend with a small smile. “I would expect nothing less.”  
They walk a little away from the guard tower. “Where's Titus?” Altoona whispers to her.  
“He's with the Commander.”  
“In the tower?”  
“Sha.”  
“I need to speak with him. Now.”  
Indra nods. “I know. But there is something I want you to know.”  
Altoona tenses and waits for Indra to spill the beans.  
“There weren't only Blue-Cliff warriors who attacked us.”  
“Who else? Azgeda?”  
“Worse than that. Our own people.”  
Altoona stops walking. “What do you mean, 'our people'?”  
“General Reewa, the General of the army of Polis, and some of her loyal warriors have teamed up with the Blue-Cliff clan against us and the Commander.”  
“Traitors!” Bronn huffs.  
“The new Commander has ordered to kill every warrior who was loyal to Reewa and fought against us.”  
“A rough start for a new Commander,” Altoona admits. “And what about Reewa? What happened to her?  
“She's with the Blue-Cliff-clan,” Bronn explains.  
“How do you know that?” asks Altoona, surprised.  
“I spotted her on a horse among the Blue-Cliff generals.”  
“I should have killed her the moment she was brought onto the stage to watch the conclave,” Indra grumbles.

They arrive at the tower. Indra is about to introduce them to the sentries but they recognize Altoona immediately and let them enter. Indra excuses herself and walks back to the guard tower.

The sentries take them to the small meeting room and send for the Flamekeeper.  
Exhausted, Bronn and Altoona let drop themselves into the chairs and gesture to the kids to do the same. One servant appears and bring them water and plate full of dried meat. Altoona forces Lexa to stay awake for a while and feed her.

Suddenly, the doors are opened and Titus enters the small meeting room. He's wearing his brown Flamekeeper cloak, closes the door behind him and looks at them, his face unreadable. Lexa recognizes him and straightens visibly.

“What's the meaning of all this?” he asks Altoona.  
“We couldn't stay in TonDC,” Altoona explains. “There were some of Reewa's warriors between our people and they were after her.” She tilts her head to Lexa. “We had to leave.”

Titus sighs. “You took a risk coming here. But now I'm glad you did.”  
“We ran into the army of the Blue-Cliff clan near Polis,” Altoona reports.  
Titus almost chokes on her report and widens his eyes. “How did you manage to flee? The sentries told me you came here without horses?”  
“They let us go, Flamekeeper,” Bronn says. “We were dressed as traders. And these warriors were more interested in the bottles of alcohol in our wooden hand cart than in us.”  
“On behalf of the Order of the flame I thank you for bringing her here safely,” Titus says to Altoona and Bronn. Then his gaze drifts to Kalo.

“This is Kalo kom Trikru, Flamekeeper,” Altoona says. “He saved Lexa by covering her head with his red blood. The Blue-Cliff warrior Reewa sent to check her blood fell for the trick and left her alone.”

Titus nods in approval. “Thank you as well, Kalo.”

Kalo stands up and takes a step forward to Titus. “It was Lexa who saved me first. She found me wounded in the forest, Flamekeeper. I own her my life.”

Titus regards the little boy. “I've seen you before. You're from Polis, right?”  
Kalo nods, takes his hand in his pocket and pulls out the tag from his uncle. He walks up to Titus and hands it over to him.

Titus looks first at the tag and then back to Kalo.

“It belonged to my uncle, his name was Aster kom Trikru,” Kalo report with a small voice.  
“Flamekeeper, there are warriors outside in the woods who are hunting Flame scouts!” Bronn reports with anger in his voice.  
“Being a Flame scout has always been dangerous,” Titus replies. “Many people don't want their Nightblood children to be found.”  
“Yes but warriors chasing after Flame scouts is something new,” Bronn adds.  
“I'll inform Heda,” Titus promises. “You can leave now, Bronn kom Trikru. I'll send for you if your help is needed.”

Relieved, he bows his head to Titus and leaves the small meeting room. Kalo walks back to Altoona and Lexa.

“Titus, what about him? He doesn't have family anymore.”  
Lexa looks to Kalo and scoots nearer to him.  
“We'll decide tomorrow. You need to rest.”  
“Where should I take them?”  
“The chamber of the Nightbloods hasn't been cleaned up yet. It might take the servants a day or two to remove the traces of what happened there,” he announces. “In the meantime you can take the guest rooms in the third floor.”

Titus gestures them to stand up. He opens the door and gives the sentries instructions.  
They are about to leave the room as Altoona stops. “Is Lexa the only Nightblood by now?”  
“No, she isn't. There's another junior Nightblood, Pretoria. You'll meet her tomorrow, together with the new Commander. The sentries will inform you then.”

Altoona nods and the sentries bring them to one of the guest rooms on the third floor. Several armed sentries are standing guard in front of their door. Altoona demand a proper meal for them and sends for a healer.

Lexa darts into the room, Kalo on her heels. She climbs on a chair and looks out of the window. From there she has a view over the market place and the temple. A moment later, Altoona joins them. “This is Polis, Lexa,” Altoona mutters. “The view from top of the tower is even better.”  
“Who lives there?” Lexa asks.  
“The Commander. There are his private chambers and of course the throne room.”  
“Have you ever been there, at the top floor?” Kalo asks.  
“Countless times,” Altoona replies. “And the view from there never gets old.”  
The three of them stare into the night for quite some time until a sudden knock on the door announces the arrival of the healer.  
“Enter!” Altoona commands loudly.  
The door opens and the fisa, a middle-age woman, enters the room. Her brown eyes scan the room and spot the familiar face immediately. The light brown-skinned woman smiles and walks up to Altoona.  
“Haven't seen you in ages, Altoona!”  
“True,” Altoona admits.  
She introduces the children to the fisa.  
“This is Alina. She's one of the healers in the tower.” 

“And these are...?” Alina motions with her left arm to children while she's looking at Altoona.  
“Lexa kom Trikru, a new Nightblood, and Kalo kom Trikru. We found him injured on our way to Polis.”  
Alina nods and regards the children. “Is the Nightblood injured as well?”  
“She has a cut in the palm of her left hand, but the wound is already several days old,” Altoona reports. “A few days ago she caught a cold and had an inflammation of one of her ears. The healer in TonDC treated her already but she hasn't fully recovered yet.”

Alina removes the bandage around Lexa's left hand and looks at the cut. “It heals properly. But she'll need a new bandage later.”  
She lays her hand on Lexa's forehead to check her temperature. “Could be better,” she grumbles. “Does it hurt somewhere?”  
Lexa holds her gaze but doesn't answer her question. Alina glances to Altoona and arches a brow.  
The healer crouches down to face the little Nightblood. “I can't treat you properly if you don't help me.” Lexa contemplates her words for a moment and then gestures with her right hand to her throat.  
Alina nods. “I'll go and bring you a tea. But before, I have to look at your little companion.”

She stands up and take a step forward to Kalo. She examines the wound at his head.  
“Any other injuries?”  
Kalo shakes his head. “No, fisa.”  
“You don't need stitches. But I have to clean the wound. It'll hurt a little but it's necessary, she explains. “Otherwise it could become infected.”

She opens the bag she has brought with her and takes out a cloth and a little bottle with an evil-smelling liquid. Altoona gets her some water and fills it into a bowl from the bathroom. She also brings a wash cloth. The fisa begins to clean his wound and afterward cleans his whole face. Then she lets some of the liquid drop into the cloth and applies it on the wound. The little boy hisses in pain.  
A servant enters the room, carrying a tray with a pot of stew and several bowls and spoons.  
“It'll be finished in a moment,” Alina says to Altoona. “Start eating, you're starving.”  
Altoona nods and fills the stew into their bowls. She gives Lexa a spoon and starts eating.  
“I should have come back earlier,” she groans. “I feel as I haven't eaten for days.”  
Alina smiles and patches up Kalo. “Now eat, boy! And then go to sleep!”.

The fisa left to get the tea for Lexa. There's another knock on the door and a servant enters. He carries several clothes for the kids and a pitcher full of fresh water. “The fisa said the children need clean clothes.” Altoona nods and motions to one of the beds. “Lay the things on the bed.”  
The servant does as he was told and exits the room without saying anything more.

A moment later the fisa returns with a mug of tea in her right hand. Lexa makes a face once she realizes that the disgusting tea is for her. “Drink!” she fisa commands sharply. Lexa glances to Altoona. “Do as you're told,” Altoona says. Sip by sip she drinks the tea to get over with it.

The fisa leaves and Altoona prepares for the night. Kalo takes off his shoes, trousers and shirt. Altoona puts him to bed and carries a almost sleeping Lexa to the bathroom. She removes her dirty clothes and wash her with a wash cloth and a piece of soap. “Better,” she says. “But no way your hair can be combed or even braided until we cut it off. But not today.” She turns to see why there wasn't any reaction from the little Nightblood only to find her sleeping. Then she carries her back in their room and lay her down in the bed next to Kalo's and extinguishes most of the candles. Altoona takes off some of her clothes and crashes into her bed. It doesn't take her long to drift into sleep, too.

It's almost noon when Altoona wakes up. She blinks several times and needs a moment to remember yesterday. Then she jumps out of her bed and looks for the children. Kalo lies on his bed and stares at the ceiling whereas Lexa is standing on a chair and looks down to the market place again.

Altoona dresses quickly and opens the door. “Any word from the Flamekeeper?”  
“We were ordered not to disturb you. He wants to introduce you to the Commander after you have had breakfast.”  
“Sha. Send for the servant. We're ready.”  
Altoona closes the door and turns to Kalo and Lexa. “Get dressed. Breakfast will be served soon.”  
She helps the children with their new clothes and shortly afterward the servant brings their breakfast and takes the pot and the bowls back to the tower's kitchen.

Titus enters the room. “Heda want's to speak with you.” Kalo looks at him with a silent question in his eyes. “All of you,” Titus clarifies. He leads them to the elevator and they are pulled up to the top floor. A servant is waiting in front of the doors to the throne room. Pretoria is standing next to him.

Titus nods to the sentries and they open the doors to the throne room for them. Titus is the first who enters the room, behind him Pretoria, then Altoona with Lexa. Kalo is the last one.  
Trenton stands up from his wooden throne when they enter the throne room but remains standing on the dais. He's in full Commander regalia, his right hand rests on the hilt of his sword. Titus bows his head and introduce them to the Commander.

“Heda, this is Altoona kom Trikru, she helped me to bring our new Nightblood safely to Polis.”  
“Heda,” Altoona just says and kneels down. Pretoria bows her head like Titus has done. Titus glared at Lexa and Kalo and gestures them to kneel down again. Lexa and Kalo glances at Altoona who is still on her knees and they do like she does.

“You may stand,” Trenton says. Altoona, Lexa and Kalo stand up again and Titus walks over to the throne and stands next to the Commander.

“Who have you brought to Polis, Altoona kom Trikru?” Trenton asks.  
Altoona takes a step to the side to make room for Lexa. “This is Lexa kom Trikru, Heda. She's a Nightblood.”  
Trenton leaves the dais to get a better look at the new Nightblood. Lexa holds his gaze and doesn't back off. Trenton motions to Lexa and Pretoria to take a seat. Then his gaze turns to Kalo.

“This is Kalo kom Trikru. His family was killed by Reewa's warriors,” Altoona reports. “He's the only surviving member of his family.”  
“So, he is the isn't worth being trained as a warrior.” Trenton says and Titus frowns. “From the clan I'm coming from, they kill every child that isn't willing to be a warrior. Only the strongest survive. So Kalo kom Trikru, give me one good reason why I shouldn't just kill you. We have more than enough orphans to feed.”  
Kalo swallows but then straightens visibly. ”I want to become a member of the order of the Flame, Heda.”  
The Commander regards the boy for another moment. “So be it. Flamekeeper, take Kalo kom Trikru as your new apprentice. Teach him everything he has to know.”  
“Sha, Heda,” Titus replies and gestures Kalo to sit down next to Lexa.

Trenton's gaze wanders back to Pretoria and Lexa. “So there are two novitiates left.” He pauses, thinking. “Titus, seek for flame scouts and send them off as soon as the Blue-Cliff army has left our territory.”  
“Sha, Heda. In which direction?”  
Trenton turns around to face Titus and clasps his hands behind his back. “In every direction.”  
Titus nods.

“Altoona kom Trikru,” Trenton begins to say and Altoona straightens. “You lived for many years in the tower and you served the former Commanders well. Also you're familiar with the order of the Flame. Therefore, I want you to look over the Nightbloods and train them.”

“It would be an honor, Heda,” Altoona replies and bows her head slightly.  
“Well, your training will begin tomorrow at dawn,” he informs Pretoria and Lexa. Pretoria just nods while Lexa's expression remains blank.

“You may go.” Trenton says. Altoona leaves the throne room, Pretoria and Lexa on her heels.  
They enter the elevator and Altoona commands the sentries to get them back to the third floor.  
“You'll stay with us,” she commands to Pretoria.  
“What about Kalo?” Lexa demands to know.  
“He's Titus' apprentice now. He'll sleep in the temple.”  
They exits the elevator and Pretoria glares daggers at Lexa. Altoona leads them back to their room where several sentries still standing guard in front of their door. Together they enter the room. Altoona heads to the bathroom whereas Lexa climbs back on the chair to look outside. Pretoria joins her for a moment, looks at the people of Polis and then back to Lexa.

“I'll kill you at the earliest opportunity,” she whispers to her. They are interrupted by Altoona who comes back from the bathroom. She puts Lexa back to bed and walks with Pretoria to the room where she slept last night to pick up her things.

The next morning, Altoona wakes up the two Nightbloods early. The sun is just to begin to rise, as they leave the tower, flanked by several sentries. They cross the market place and head to the training ground behind the guard house. She sends a sentry to the armory. A moment later he's back with three wooden swords. Two small and a bigger one. She hands the wooden swords over to Lexa and Pretoria. 

“Feel the sword in your hands,” Altoona shouts and twirls her own sword. “You and the sword, you have to become one, the sword must be a part of your body.”  
For Lexa it's the first time she holds a sword. She twirls it around and a small smile tugs on her lips.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What do you think? Are you ready for a time jump? :-)


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we go again :-)

Five years later.

Summer was coming to Polis. Titus had led the Nightbloods to their trainings ground outside from Polis earlier this day. Lexa was sitting on a big gray stone, her sparring sword lying next to her. With the summer approaching quickly, she would turn seven summers soon.

She looked to the tower, which was several miles away from them, and blinked her eyes for several times because of the blinding light the sun provided. Her gaze wandered to her her left hand and she traced the faint scar on her palm with her right index finger. She moved her left hand up and down and looked at the scar from different angles.

“Did you get injured during the last exercise?” Jenn asked her and looked curiously at her hands. Lexa tilted her head to the younger Nightblood of the Shallow Valley clan.  
“No, I didn't,” she says clipped. And even if she were, she wouldn't let her know either.

Jenn straightened and the sudden movement made her ash blond braids twirl around wildly.  
“I'm turning six summers soon,” she said with proud in her voice, “which means I will not be a junior Nightblood much longer.” The younger Nightblood was obviously happy about Titus bringing her here today for the first time.  
Lexa regarded her for a moment but didn't respond to her verbally.

“Just one more kid I'm going to kill at the next conclave,” a familiar voice suddenly spatted at them. Lexa narrows her eyes when she spotted Pretoria coming over to them. The eldest Nightblood had seen ten summers so far and had begun to grow big recently.

“I won't let you win,” Lexa snapped back and jumped down from the gray stone where she had rested.  
“You're ridiculous,” Pretoria said. “Look at you. You're small. Small and weak. You're not worth becoming Commander.”  
Lexa gritted her teeth, raised her sparring sword and went into a fighting position. “To become Commander one day, you'll have to kill me first,” she growls at the older Nightblood.   
“It'll be my pleasure,” Pretoria answered and grinned evilly at her. Then, she walked back to Titus and the other Nightbloods, ignoring Lexa's fighting stance. Another wave of anger hit Lexa.

“Can you both stop arguing for once?” Jenn asked and rolled her eyes.   
“I need to fight her. She's evil. She must not become the next Heda.”  
“The Flamekeeper said the spirits of the former Commander would choose the next one. And they always choose wisely. So they won't choose her for sure.” She shrugged. “See? No need to worry about that!”   
Lexa flashed her a weak smile. She was sure Jenn hadn't fully understood yet what it means to be a Nightblood. “Let's go back to the others, the break is over anyway.”

Titus nodded in approval when he saw Lexa and Jenn approaching.   
“More sparring,” he grumbles. “You all need many more lessons. I'm not satisfied with your progress so far.” He let his gaze wander over the older Nightbloods gathered here. After Trenton's ascension, several new Nightbloods were found and brought to Polis. Seven novitiates, including Jenn, had already seen more than six summers and would be able to take part in a conclave. Besides Pretoria and Lexa, there were Luna and her brother Olan from the Boat people clan, Jenn from Shallow Valley clan, Esno from the Desert clan and Brix from the Rockline clan.

“Pretoria, you're fighting against Luna,” Titus ordered. “Olan,” he said, “you're fighting against Esno.” He looked at the three remaining Nightbloods. “Jenn, you're fighting against Brix.” The Nightbloods took their sparring swords and went a few steps away and waited for Titus to give the signal to start the fight. Lexa still stood with Titus and looked at him, puzzled. 

“Lexa, you're fighting against me.” The Nightblood arched a brow in respond. “Flamekeeper, you don't have a sparring sword.” 

“You're right, but that won't stop me training you!” He turned and waved one of warriors who were standing guard, to him. “Give me your sword.”

The sentry looked confused for a moment but handed his sword over to Titus eventually.  
“Flamekeeper, this isn't a proper sparring sword,” Lexa said.

“I'm aware, Lexa. So you better do your best or you'll feel a sharp blade cutting your skin.”  
Lexa nodded. It wasn't the first time that she got more challenging tasks than the other Nightbloods. She knew better than to complain.

Titus twirled the sword in his hand with a fluid motion and looked back to the Nightbloods. Lexa wasn't used to see Titus giving sparring lessons. To her surprise he seemed to be a skilled warrior.  
“Remember what Altoona taught you the other day. Don't talk. Focus on your opponent. Attack now! And no holding back this time!”

Gustus, who had given Titus his sword and had become a member of the tower guard, watched the Flamekeeper and Lexa with interest. The Nightblood inhaled deeply and walked in circles around Titus when she remembered his command to attack. She stopped walking and went the other way around quickly. Titus took a defensive position and waited for her attack. 

Lexa realized that she didn't know how skilled he really was. She had some experiences in sparring with the other Nightbloods. She knew very well their strengths and weaknesses. Altoona had given them lessons almost every day. 

Without any further delay she started her first attack at Titus. She launched herself on him but Titus easily dodged. She took a step aside twirls her sword and attacked again. Titus blocks the next attacks as well. The clang of metal on metal fills the air. They were sparring for a while without one of them winning. Then, Lexa jumped to the side to dodge Titus' counterattack. She stumbled and fell down. The Flamekeeper couldn't raise his sword fast enough and it cut into Lexa's right calf.

Lexa was laying on the ground but she didn't let go of her sparring sword. The gritted her teeth and raised her sword once again, to defend herself. Titus lowered sword. “Over!” he commanded to the fighting Nightbloods. 

Lexa sit up and let go of her sword. She lost. She felt angry. She would train even harder she promised herself while she put her hands over the wound. Black blood ran down her leg and covered her hands. She hissed slightly in pain but tried to stand up on her own. Asking people for help because of a small injury shows weakness. Altoona and Titus had told them this again and again.

“Don't!” Titus shouts and raises his left hand. He waved to Gustus and gave him his sword back. Gustus sheathed the sword and looked to Titus.  
“Take her to the healer. Carry her if necessary,” Titus ordered. ”Afterward, accompany her to the Nightblood quarters.”  
Gustus nodded and turned to Lexa.  
She struggled to stand up until Gustus reached out his hand and pulled her up to a standing position.   
“I will walk,” she announced to Gustus. Without any further discussion the both of them were on their way back to the tower, whereas Titus begun another sparring lesson. Every step Lexa took increased the pain she felt. But neither did she cry nor did she complain. She had to be strong. At least in front of the other Nightbloods and Titus.

As soon as they were out of sight, Lexa stopped. Gustus looked at her and picked her up to carry her home. It didn't take them long to get to the city gate of Polis. “Take me down, Gustus, please.”  
“But you're wounded! It will only get worse if you...-”  
“Take me down!” Lexa repeated, her voice a little more demanding this time. Gustus let her down and walked at her side through the city gate. 

Lexa walked with a limp through Polis until they arrived at the tower. She didn't want people to see her carried by Gustus. She wasn't a junior Nightblood anymore. And this meant, she would take part in the next conclave to become Commander. She didn't want to look weak. She was sure, the spirits of the former Commanders would never choose a weak Nightblood.

Gustus gave the tower guards, who were standing at the main entrance of the tower, a small nod and entered the tower together with Lexa. He led her to the elevator and ordered the warriors to pull them up to the Nightblood's floor. One warrior accompanied them in the elevator. 

Despite the pain, Lexa looked up to him and watched the sentry. He stood straight and didn't pay any attention to the Nightblood. She stared at his bold head with the dark tattoos which ran over the left half of his face. Her gaze wandered to his weapons. Like every sentry, he was carrying a spear. Several knifes were sheathed at his belt. Internally, Lexa was wondering why most of sentries within the tower didn't carry proper swords. She had had some spear fighting lessons, too. So she knew a spear was a dangerous weapon as well. Altoona had already taught them that there wasn't a weapon that was better than every other. It depended on the circumstances of the fight and your enemy. Lexa preferred a sword. As soon as she becomes a second to a skilled warrior, she will be allowed to carry a sword all day. Lexa was sure, she would never lay aside her sword then, not even in sleep.

The elevator stopped abruptly and the three of them walked to the quarters of the Nightbloods. Before they entered, Gustus ordered the sentry to look for Alina. The sentry nodded and hurried away.

Lexa limped to one of the chairs and let herself drop onto one of the chairs. The regarded her injured leg and made a face. It wasn't the first time the got a cut during a lesson bus this time it was quite a gash. Surely, she would need stitches. Gustus stood next to her and watched her in silence when the fisa entered the Nightblood's quarters.

“Ah, it's Lexa once again!” she said and approached her quickly. “What happened this time?”  
“I got injured during a sword fighting lesson,” Lexa answered and gestured with her arms to her bleeding leg.  
“Take off your boots and your trousers. And then lie down,” the fisa ordered. Gustus was about to help her undress but Lexa raised her hand. “It's okay, I can do this by myself.” Gustus and Alina bandied a look and let her do.

Lexa quietly hissed when she took off the ripped trousers and lied down as she was told. Gustus took the ripped trousers and laid it into the basket with the dirty cloths.  
The fisa inspected the wound a made a worried face.   
“Quite a deep cut for a sparring sword” she murmured.  
“The Flamekeeper trained me with a proper sword,” Lexa explained.  
“I see.”  
The fisa took her bag she had brought with her and took out the surgeon kit.  
“You''ll need stitches.”  
Lexa just nodded and gritted her teeth as the fisa began to stitch her up. It was hard for her to hold back tears.

“Where's Aloona, by the way?” Alina asked Gustus while she was taking care of Lexa's leg.  
“She's still in TonDC. But we're expecting her back soon. She went there to visit her friend Indra, who gave birth to a girl earlier this year.”  
“Hhmm. Who is looking after the Nightbloods, when she's away?”  
“Most of the time it's me or Titus,” Gustus said and he was slightly grumbling.   
Alina smiled and then focused on the wound again.  
“I'll come to look at the wound once a day. You must rest now.”  
“How long?” Lexa asked.  
The fisa gave a questioning look.  
“How long won't I be able to train?” Lexa clarified.  
“That I can not say for sure. At least six days, maybe more.”   
Lexa was shocked. She hadn't expected that the healing would take so long. If the Commander died in the next days, which isn't highly likely, she wouldn't have a chance against Pretoria. Damn it.

The fisa left them and Gustus brought her to her bed. “You know what she said. Stay in bed until she says otherwise.”  
Lexa just lied down but didn't reply verbally. She crossed her arms over her chest and stared against the ceiling.   
“Patience is something you still have to learn.”  
Lexa narrowed her eyes and huffed slightly in annoyance.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading my story!  
> btw, I know my english sucks sometimes. So, is there an english native speaker who would like to proofread the next chapters? As you can see, I don't post new chapters very often, so there wouldn't be much work to do. Well, you can find me on Twitter @Alex_Altoona


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it has been a while...

It took Lexa quite a while to convince Gustus to leave the Nightblood's quarter. Eventually, he left the room and was standing guard in front their door now. Lexa was still lying in her bed, the arms crossed over her chest and stared against the ceiling. She didn't watch him go. She was angry with herself. Again and again she remembered the sword fight with Titus. In her head, she analyzed every step they took and every move they made. What did she do wrong? How could the Flamekeeper defeat her?  
“Damn it, I underestimated him,” she cursed quietly. She slowly raised her right arm and clenches her hand. “That won't happen again!” she promised herself. 

But what now? Lying injured in her bed was a waste of time. While she was forced to rest, the other Nightbloods were training. This afternoon, they would practice knife throwing. Or would they even get another lesson in archery? She imagined vividly how Pretoria would stand on the training ground and hit the target with her arrows precisely. The oldest of the Nightblood was pretty good at archery. Unlike her, the bow was Pretoria's favorite weapon. To keep up with the other Nightbloods, she would need to train even harder as soon as the fisa would let her.

She sat up and looked at her injured leg. Then the door opened and Lexa's head snapped up to check who was approaching her. It caught her by surprise to see Kalo enter.

Like Pretoria, he had seen ten summers so far. He was already wearing the typical brown cloak of the order of the flame.

The boy walked in her direction and made a slightly bow as he started to speak. “The Flamekeeper sent me to look after you.”

“The Flamekeeper? Wasn't he supposed to train the older Nightbloods at the training ground?”

“He sent for a skilled warrior to teach them more lessons in archery,” he reported. “He is already back in the temple.”

Lexa was wondering if she had ever seen Titus shooting a bow. She tried to imagine the Flamekeeper with bow and arrow but failed. 

“What is it?” Kalo asked, confused.

“I almost did it again,” Lexa grumbled and scowled visibly.

The Flamekeeper apprentice tilted his head and gave her time to explain.

“I underestimated the fighting skills of the Flamekeeper,” she clarified. “I did it this morning and I got a cut into my leg. Then I was sure I would never underestimate someone again.”

“But?”

“I almost underestimated him once again because I haven't seen the Flamekeeper using a bow.”

“Speaking of that, I have never seen him with a bow, either,” Kalo admitted. A little smile tugged at his lips but he suppressed it successfully.

“That's not the point,” Lexa said. “Just because we haven't seen him using this kind of weapon doesn't mean he isn't capable of using it properly.”  
“Underestimating your opponent is always a bad thing,” Kalo responded. “Even a simple merchant can be dangerous for a skilled warrior. Fear can give them strength you wouldn't expect.” And then he added, “as can faith.” Kalo clasped his hands loosely in front of his chest and he reminded Lexa of Titus.

Lexa regarded him for a moment. “You haven't been here very often recently.”  
Kalo nodded. “The Flamekeeper didn't let me. Flamekeeper apprentices have to study hard. Titus is very strict on that point.”

“Were you punished by him?”

“I don't get punished very often. I've been a member of the order for five years now, so I know the rules. It's not wise to mess with him. I always do my best, it's an honor to be even trained as a Flamekeeper.”

“I'm sure you are a good member of the order of the flame. When will you become a Flamekeeper?”

“Sooner as I have hoped for. Titus talked to me the other day and said that I would become a Flamekeeper at the next midsummer celebration!”

“Oh, that early!” Lexa said, surprised. “Do you have a kind of initiation ritual like the warriors do?”

Kalo went pale for a moment before he regained his composure quickly. “Of course we do!”

“What do you have to do to pass the ritual?”

“I'll have to swear an oath in front of all members of the order and the Commander,” Kalo explained. “Then a member of the order is going to castrate me.”

Lexa hadn't expected this kind of answer. Although Titus spent much time with them as their teacher, there were still things regarding to the order of the flame which he avoided talking about. She was interested to learn more about the order of the flame. Since Kalo seemed to answer her questions willingly, she decided to take the chance and asked Kalo for the reason for this bloody ritual.

“Why is that?” 

“It proofs my loyalty to the order of the flame.”

“I see.”

“Every male Flamekeeper is castrated. We need to focus on our work. We aren't allowed to have an own family. To there can't be a conflict between the duties of a Flamekeeper and the interests regarding his partner and children.”

While explaining, Kalo walks slowly back and forth along the windows. “Also, “he added, “ this makes sure that there will never be some kind of romantic relationship between a Flamekeeper and the Commander.” Kalo stopped and turned to her. “Love is weakness, you know?”

Lexa had been told that love was weakness before. It seemed, this was quite an important topic to Titus because he told this the Nightbloods at least once a week.

“Titus has taught us that as well. To be a Commander is to be alone,” Lexa quoted the Flamekeeper.

“Correct,” Kalo confirmed. “But speaking about that isn't exactly why Titus sent me here.”  
Lexa was excited to learn about why Kalo came here in the first place.

“He was told that you must rest for several days. So he sent me to you to find a way to use the time to develop your skills.”

“But how?” Lexa asked. “Right now, I can barely move.”

“You mean, you can barely walk.” Kalo hums. “I didn't get specific orders what to train with you.” He looked around, thinking. “The other Nightbloods are training knife throwing, let's do that as well.”

“Here?” Lexa asked, trying to analyze whether the Flamekeeper apprentice was kidding her. “In the chamber of the Nightbloods?”

“You don't have to go to the training ground to train.”  
That made sense to her.

“Do you have already your own knifes?” Kalo demanded to know and made a step in her direction.  
“After a certain Nightblood had announced in public she would stab Luna and me in the sleep,” Lexa said coldly, “we aren't allowed to bring knifes or swords here anymore.”

“Are still sharing this chamber with Pretoria?”  
“Usually not. Altoona ordered that she has to sleep in the same chamber like her, together with the junior Nightbloods. But since Altoona has been on a trip to Ton DC, we've been sharing our chamber with her and the junior Nightbloods again.”

“Are you scared of her being here?”

How dared he to ask such a question? Did she seem weak? Lexa narrowed her eyes. “No, I'm not scared. I'm a Nightblood. I'm going to take part in the next conclave. There's no place for cowards in the conclave.”

Kalo nodded, obviously liking her answer.

“Wait a moment,” Kalo said and darted to the door and spoke to one of the tower guards. Lexa could hear how one tower guard hurried away. Kalo came back to her and without her asking he explained.  
“I ordered to bring us a wooden target and a few knifes.”  
“Since when is the tower guard taking orders from a Flamekeeper apprentice?”

Kalo gestures at his brown cloak and straightened. “Since I've been allowed to wear the Flamekeeper cloak!” Lexa could tell that there was something like proud in his voice although he tried to appear calm and he seemed somehow eager to mimic Titus.

Kalo opened his cloak and pulled a knife from his belt and handed it over to Lexa. She took it and gave him a questioning look. He watched her how she held the knife in her right hand.  
“What have you trained regarding knife throwing so far?” He asked her.  
“We were throwing them from different distances at wooden targets,” Lexa reported truthfully.  
The Flamekeeper apprentice frowned visibly. “That's all? Nothing else?”  
The Nightblood shook her head.

“So you have never trained to throw at a moving target? To throw from a sitting position? It's good if you can hit the middle of the wooden target from a standing position but that's not enough. Unfortunately, your enemy doesn't standing still and wait for your knife to cut into his flesh.”

She made a small nod to show him that he had a point. Internally, Lexa was wondering why he had decided to become a Flamekeeper at all. He could have become a strong warrior as well. 

Kalo asked her to show him how she used to hold a knife. He made come corrections by repositioning her fingers a bit. He looked at her hand from different angles so make sure she hold the knife correctly. 

It didn't take long until a warrior of the tower guard entered the chamber, carrying a wooden target, its transportable frame and an additional leather belt with several knifes. He laid the knifes on one of the tables and leaned the wooden target and the frame against a chair. Kalo checked the weapons and sent the guard back to Gustus.

The Flamekeeper apprentice set the wooden target up in front of a wall, in a distance of six yards from Lexa's bed. Then he brought the belt with the four knifes to Lexa and put them next to her on the furs.

“Try to hit the middle of the target. And remember how to hold the knife. They don't differ much from mine.”  
To Lexa it was a new experience to throw from a sitting position. She gave the knife back to Kalo and pulled one from the leather belt. She waited for him to step aside and focused on the target. It was a big wooden disk with a red marked center. She looked at the knife in her hand, checked the position of her fingers and raised her right arm until her hand with the knife was at the same height as her ear. With a sudden and strong move, she released the knife and it flew in the direction she wanted. It stuck but missed the center of the target clearly.

Kalo didn't give her time to grumble. “Next one!” he commanded and points to the three remaining knifes on her bed. Lexa didn't hesitate to grab the next knife and threw it at the target. It missed the target, hit the wall and fell to the ground. Without any further motivation by Kalo, she took the other two knifes and threw them as well. One hit the target near the center but didn't stick. The last knife stick several inches away from the center. Lexa felt angry with herself again. Knife throwing was one of her best fighting skills, at least she had thought so. 

Without further commenting, Kalo went to the wall to fetch the knifes and brought them back to her. He gave her a small nod and she tried again. Only slowly Lexa got better. They trained this way the whole afternoon. Lexa threw the knifes and Kalo brought them back to her.

At the end, he collected the knifes and sat down next to her. “Your throwing technique is good. All you need is to train harder,” he said to her. To her surprise he showed off his own knife throwing skills. The first two knifes hit the center of the target. Then he lied down on the floor and threw the two remaining knifes from a lying position. Like the ones before, the next two knifes hit the center of the target, too.

Lexa looked from the target with the four knifes to Kalo. The Flamekeeper apprentice stood up, fetched the knifes and put them back at the leather belt.  
“We'll continue tomorrow,” he promised her. He took down the wooden target and laid it under Lexa's bed, together with the frame.  
“For your own protection,” he announced and gestured at the knifes, “I'll take these with me.”

Lexa knew very well that he was referring to Pretoria and couldn't suppress a pout. Kalo regarded her for a moment. “I can hear you thinking, Lexa. You have to mask your emotions better.”

The Nightblood straightened at those words and tried to look impassive.  
“Better,” Kalo said. He was about to leave, when Lexa needed to ask him a question.

“How come that you're so well trained in knife throwing?” Lexa tilted her head and regarded him.

“For a Flamekeeper, it's essential to know how to use a knife properly. It's not only that we need it in case of an ascension. It's a tool we are always carrying with us, even when we sleep. Therefore, it's also a weapon if we need to defend ourselves or the Commander.”

After she watched him leave and tilted her head to look out of the windows. From the angle of the sun, the other Nightbloods would be back soon, she thought. Internally, she prepared to face Pretoria again. With a visible limp, she walked over to the bathroom to take care of certain things. Then, she stood a while in front of an old mirror. She stared at herself. She needed to look stronger. Trying to make a threatening face was more difficult than she had expected. At first, she couldn't focus on the task and she failed to make a threatening or at least impassive face. She almost began to laugh because scowling at the mirror without having an actual reason for it was hard. From this day on, she would practice this.

Now she really understood, what Titus and Altoona had meant when they had taught them about the importance of appearance. She just had witnessed how Kalo, who wasn't a Flamekeeper yet, dealt with the sentries of the tower guard. He was still a boy, so much smaller and weaker than the sentries. But he already had the demeanor of a Flamekeeper. Lexa was sure it wasn't just his new robe. It was also the way he moved and spoke. He wasn't exactly a role model for her because he was going to become a Flamekeeper whereas she was going to become the next Commander. And a Flamekeeper didn't have to lead an army. Or had to make hard decisions. She glared at the mirror for another while, then, satisfied with her expression, she limped back to her bed.

It didn't take long until she could hear children running along the hallway. The junior Nightbloods were coming back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading my story :-)


End file.
